The Walls Keep Our Secret
by thesoundofmeaning
Summary: AU: Kurt Hummel is a member of the New Directions of McKinley HS and Blaine Anderson is a member of the Warblers of Dalton Academy. The schools' show choirs have been feuding for years and it is a rule that members never associate with each other. But when Kurt and Blaine have a chance encounter that could change their lives forever, will they give all of that up for their groups?
1. Chapter 1

A/N: Hello again, everyone! For those of you who followed Heaven Sent You To Me, be forewarned that this will not be the sappy, romantic, loveydovey story that you're used to. This is a new world of secrets and smut. The relationship will center on Klaine, obviously, but there will be heavy interaction with outside characters, mainly familial Blainetana, Plaine friendship and Furt brotherhood. Keep an eye out for other friendly faces as well!

Wrap your mittens around your kittens, and away we gooooo! Enjoy!

* * *

"Dude, it's gonna be _such _a good time!" Puck was yelling at Blaine, slapping his shoulder lightly as the two walked from their English Lit class to Math. He'd just spent the entire class period passing notes back and forth, trying to convince Blaine into joining him at their friend, Sebastian's, house party that was going to be this coming weekend. Blaine wasn't much for house parties. They always wound up full of overly drunk teenagers who either wound up having unprotected sex, physically hurting each other, or needing their stomachs pumped by the end of the night. None of those options even remotely appealed to Blaine. He'd rather spend the night relaxing, watching a movie, reading a good book, literally doing _anything _besides going to Sebastian's house party. If house parties weren't bad enough, Sebastian's just completely trumped them all because, well, it's _Sebastian._

"I don't know, man. It just really isn't my thing, you know that. I know, I know," Blaine began when Puck opened his mouth to begin protesting. "I'm no fun. All I ever wanna do is sit at home. I'm a teenager and I need to 'go out and get drunk and fuck some girls'!" Blaine was speaking in his best imitation of Puck's voice with just enough biting sarcasm to make it comical. "The only problem is that I don't like how I feel when I'm drunk and it's _boys _I want to fuck, not girls. Imagine that!" Blaine flapped his arms up and down dramatically, rolling his eyes and starting to walk away from his friend.

Puck followed after him. "Look, I'm not saying you need to come to this party and get blackout wasted and fuck some random girl or whatever. All I'm saying is that it'll be good for you to get out of that toxic house you live in, just for one night. You know damn good and well that without Cooper around it's absolutely fucking miserable there. So just get up off your fine gay ass and come with me to this party. Who knows, you might even meet the man of your dreams and maybe _he _won't be drinking or fucking girls either!" Puck said in an excited little boy voice, mocking Blaine.

"Oh _ha ha. _You're just _so funny. _I'm clutching my sides in laughter," Blaine bit back. Puck did have a point, and that annoyed him. His house was completely toxic. Cooper was his only ally and when he moved out a few months ago to head to LA and pursue his 'acting career' (a stupid credit commercial is _not _acting) Blaine was more alone than he could have ever imagined. His parents only isolated themselves even further from their _gay son_ and Blaine wasn't necessarily upset by that. Being as far from them as possible was actually preferable and much easier to live with than having to be around people who hate you and wish you'd never been born. Puck knew all of this because he was Blaine's closest friend at Dalton and Blaine had really leaned on him after Cooper left.

"I'm not trying to be _funny,_ Blaine. I'm just trying to get you to see past your nonconformist bullshit and come to the damn party with me. Sebastian will be there, and Nick and Jeff and Wes and all the guys. Everyone wants you to get out of your house. It's only one night. No one's asking for a blood donation. Just show up, listen to some music, talk with the guys, and if you're not having a good time, you get up and leave whenever the hell you want. C'mon, buddy, just do it. It's _one night._ Be a teenager for like, a second. I know it's hard for you because you're so blinded by your showtunes and grandpa cardigans to realize that's _what you are, _but just let loose for _once. _For me?" Puck's tone had changed from sarcastic and mocking to gentle and caring. He was constantly worried about Blaine and how he'd fare in that shitshow of a house he lived in. His parents were real fucking jackasses and if there was one thing he hated, it was that Blaine, one of the most caring and considerate people he'd ever met in his life, was treated like crap by _his own parents _just because he was gay. It was totally bogus.

Blaine thought about it for a second, feeling more tempted by Puck's words than he'd normally be. And when he looked over and saw how sad Puck looked, though he didn't really understand why, he caved. "_Fine_. I'll think about it and let you know alright?" Blaine said, shrugging his shoulders and shaking his head in defeat.

"Fine. But do both you and me and favor and do more than just think about it. It really will be a good thing for you to get out of that house. And it's gonna be fun! C'mon! You make a party sound like death row. Jesus, Anderson. You're impossible," Puck shoved him playfully.

"Ugh. Whatever. Lemme just think about it some more and I'll let you know by the end of the day. Deal?" Blaine asked, compromising, knowing he'd get Puck off his back if he made it seem like he was leaning towards the answer he was looking for.

"Deal, now let's get a move on or else we're gonna be late and Ms. Morgan will make us do even more of that bullshit math we're learning," Puck said, starting to walk towards the staircase to get to their next class.

"I'll catch up with you in a second, I just gotta run to my locker for something," Blaine said, turning in the opposite direction towards his locker.

"Cool, dude," Puck shouted after him as he ran up the stairs and Blaine reached his locker.

When he got there, he switched out his books and checked his phone to find one new text message from his cousin, Santana. He and Santana were really close, but it didn't explain why she'd be texting him on a Tuesday morning. _Strange, _he thought to himself before opening the message.

**"Hey there Blaineykins. I heard about your buddy Sebastian's party this weekend. All of the Cheerios were invited and we figured it would be a good time considering all the fine Warbler ass we'd have up for grabs. Will I see you there?" **

Blaine didn't realize this party had become such a big deal. Santana went to McKinley High in Lima and if she knew about it three towns over then it would most definitely be out of control. _They do say that good news travels fast,_ Blaine thought, groaning to himself and hanging his overwhelming feeling of really _not _wanting to partake in the weekend's festivities washed over Blaine once more as he realized that he now had about a zero percent chance of being able to get out of going. If Santana was going too, between she and Puck he'd never hear the end of it. Resigned on the fact he was going to have to go to this stupid thing, he texted her back.

**"Heyy Tana, yeah, I'll be there. With bells on. Can't wait to see you."**

Rolling his eyes and shoving his phone in his bag, Blaine closed his locker and found his way to his math class where Puck was already waiting for him in the back of the classroom. Blaine walked back and sat down next to his friend. "I thought about it. And you win. I'll go to this stupid party," Blaine said, pulling out his notebook and pen and rolling his eyes simultaneously.

"Good shit, man," Puck replied smugly, as though he knew all along that Blaine would acquiesce to his request.

"_But _if I'm having a crappy time, I'm leaving and you can't say or do anything about it. Got it?" Blaine demanded, staring fixedly at Puck with narrowed eyes.

"Yeah, yeah, whatever. But you have to go in there with an open mind and not be a shit about it. Give it a chance before you completely rule it out and decide to leave. If you go thinking it's gonna be a bust, then it's gonna be a bust. So you be fair, and at least _try _to have a good time, and I'll let you leave whenever you want if you really aren't having it," Puck said, holding out his hand for Blaine to shake on it.

Blaine extended his hand, shaking Puck's and wondering what he'd just gotten himself into.

* * *

The party started at 9pm, but Blaine definitely did _not _want to be the first ones there, so he had convinced Puck and Santana to arrive fashionably late. At 9:23, Blaine, Puck, Santana and a few of her Cheerio friends were walking into Sebastian's _huge _house. The music was deafening and Blaine groaned internally at the stereotypical scene that was unfolding before his eyes. Though the party had only been going on for about twenty minutes, the girls, who were barely dressed, were already throwing themselves around, tripping over themselves and screaming loudly and drunkenly. The guys were all huddled around a beer pong table, and the shouting and chanting of "CHUG CHUG CHUG" was so totally barbaric that Blaine was sure he'd time traveled to Medieval times. He couldn't suppress the snort and eye roll that happened naturally in response. People were grouped off all over the house. Blaine recognized the boys from Dalton in one corner, while other groups of people he wasn't familiar with scattered throughout the ridiculously sized interior.

"And let the games begin," Santana said, her voice sultry. Blaine felt sorry for the poor fool who'd wind up being inevitably seduced by his cousin. He was gay and she was his cousin, but there was simply no denying how gorgeous Santana was, and she was in complete control of that 'being so sexy guys can't even function' thing. He'd seen the same situation unfold with almost every guy she'd ever been with. They see, they like, she lures them in, she gets what she wants, and she shoves them to the door so quickly they can barely register it's all over. Then they'd come crawling back, hoping for a real chance, and if she so chose, she'd repeat all over again. It really was a vicious cycle.

Blaine watched her walk away and into the crowd, being snapped back into reality by Puck, who was still standing beside him. "See!" He was yelling over the music and Blaine wanted to smack him. "I told you it wouldn't be so bad! This looks fine. C'mon, let's go mingle or some shit."

For the next hour and a half, Blaine forced himself to try and 'mingle or some shit', as Puck had so eloquently phrased it, to no avail. Everyone was completely wasted at that point, including Puck. Santana had disappeared, and Blaine was sure she wouldn't be seen for at least an hour or so, depending on how much she liked the guy she trapped. Blaine was trying to have fun, trying to keep an open mind and enjoy the music and talk to his friends- and he wasn't having a _bad _time, necessarily, he just wasn't having a good time. He'd have much rather hung out with all of his friends from the Warblers somewhere else, somewhere that alcohol and sex wouldn't be the primary focus. It was definitely nice to get to spend time with them outside of school and practice, but this just wasn't the best setting. Blaine couldn't help but feel uncomfortable as he was the only sober person in the house. They tried to make it fun and tried to make him enjoy himself, but he felt forced and he'd had about enough for one night.

Blaine found Puck and told him that he'd tried, that he had a good time while it lasted, but that he was over it and wanted to head home for the night. Puck seemed disappointed and had tried to bargain with him and coerce him into staying longer, but Blaine just shrugged him off and ignored his protests. He was definitely leaving. Or he was, until he was halfway to the door and a _very drunk _Sebastian blocked his path.

"_Heeeeeeyyyyy, Blainers! _How're doin' night?" Sebastian was slurring so badly he could barely get his words out to form a cohesive sentence. He was also having a great deal of trouble holding himself up, finally settling on using Blaine's shoulder to steady himself.

"I'm doing just fine, Seb. How're you doing? You seem to be enjoying yourself," Blaine said, trying to fight back his giggles and eventually winding up just smirking at how completely stupid Sebastian looked.

"I'm dogood. 'M s'drunk. Areyoudrunk? Where you goin? You leavin?" It seemed Sebastian had somehow figured out that Blaine was leaving and he was now standing in front of Blaine purposefully blocking his way to the door. "Oo can'leave. We gon'ave fun."

"Sebastian, I can't even understand a fucking word that you're saying. And to be honest, my head is pounding from this horrible fucking music you've been blasting all night. So if you'd excuse me, I'm gonna get going," Blaine said, removing Sebastian's arm from his shoulder and nudging him out of his way. He would have shoved him, but considering how drunk he was, he figured that even the slightest amount of force would send the taller boy flying and he'd wind up falling on his ass.

"Nononononono. Dongo, Blainers. Stay! We'll have fuuuuuunnnn," Sebastian was singsonging his words at this point and Blaine was shaking his head in disbelief. He looked like a begging five-year-old. If only he could record how these people act when they're drunk and then force them to watch themselves when they're sober, they'd probably crawl into balls and die. Before he could respond and tell Sebastian again that he was leaving, his hand was being dragged and Sebastian was leading him into one of the smaller rooms at the end of the very long hallway. Blaine was trying to fight him off and make Sebastian let go, but his grip was really firm considering how drunk he was, and Blaine couldn't shake him. Despite how much he tripped and stumbled on his way to the room, he never let go of his grip on Blaine's hand. When they reached the room, Sebastian shoved him inside and slammed the door behind them, falling against it as it closed and laughing over something Blaine must have missed.

"Seb, I don't know what you're doing or what's funny, but I'm not playing games with you right now. Let me out of here, please," Blaine asked, slightly hesitant and feeling a little anxious. Sebastian was one of his best friends and he wasn't necessarily scared of the other boy, but he was acting really strangely and he was _so drunk. _

Sebastian kept laughing to himself and then reached out to grab Blaine and drag him closer so that their bodies were sealed together, still leaning against the door. Blaine used his forearms to press against Sebastian's torso and push him away, but he wasn't quick enough and Sebastian's lips were on his before he could even protest. The kiss didn't last long before Blaine reacted instinctively, knee coming up and slamming into Sebastian's balls with just enough force to make the taller boy fall on all fours. Blaine could still hear Sebastian whining in pain as he ran down the hallway. He had tears in his eyes and he was so completely flustered that he had to take a minute to process where he was going before he could find the front door and run out of the house.

When he got in his car he wasn't exactly sure where he was going. He didn't want to go home just yet because the last thing he wanted to deal with after what just happened was his ignorant parents hounding him about something insignificant. All he could focus on right now was getting away from that stupid party. He hadn't even wanted to go in the first place. He knew the party would get out of hand and that he'd wind up having a miserable time, and that was just an understatement so it seemed. Blaine made a mental note that Sebastian was a complete dick and that he needed to verbally abuse him the next time he saw him. He knew Sebastian wasn't trying to assault him or anything, they're best friends after all, he was just being a stupid fucking drunk asshole, just like Blaine knew he would be. Next time Puck or Santana tried to persuade him into going to one of their stupid parties, he'd be the nonconformist grandpa that they thought he was. At least that way he wouldn't miss out on his favorite Friday night television and wind up being surrounded by drunk morons as the alternative. After driving for quite some time, Blaine realized that he was nowhere near home and decided to use his GPS to find the nearest coffee place. The next one was conveniently only about five minutes away and Blaine followed the GPS lady's directions until he was pulling into the lot.

After parking and walking into the store, Blaine absentmindedly walked to the counter, fumbling for his wallet in his coat pocket. When the barista turned around and Blaine looked up, ready to place his order, his breath caught in his throat at the radiant blue eyes that were shining back at him.


	2. Chapter 2

Blaine stared at the boy behind the counter for much longer than he intended. The other boy stared back with a contorted bitchface, eyebrows raised, lips downturned in a scowl, silently asking what his problem was and why he was so blatantly staring. After a few more seconds, he started fidgeting with his apron, breaking eye contact, feeling extremely uncomfortable. He cleared his throat and spoke for the first time, taking Blaine by surprise. "I'm sorry, but is there something I can get you? Coffee? A scone?" His voice was beautiful, like bells ringing. When he looked back up and made eye contact once more, Blaine's face immediately went bright red realizing he must have made the other boy uncomfortable by staring for as long as he had.

"Wha- Oh! Yeah! S-sorry. I'll, uh, I'll have a medium drip, please," Blaine replied nervously, opening his wallet and pulling out the money he'd need to pay for his coffee while the other boy set to work making it. He was making a conscious effort to avoid eye contact with the other boy, not wanting to make him feel uneasy, but _god _he was beautiful. His eyes were the most beautiful shade of blue that Blaine had ever seen. They literally glistened every time the other boy moved and the light from above hit his irises. Blaine thought he could spend hours just staring into them and doing nothing else. His skin was milky white, only blemished by the few freckles that littered his cheeks and his nose. Normally people hated freckles, but Blaine just imagined spending lazy days tracing his index finger across them, making an invisible pattern. His hair, the little that Blaine could see from underneath the hat that must have been part of his uniform, was a gorgeous shade of sandy blonde. It was perfectly done and Blaine just wanted to run his fingers through it, could picture his hands running through it softly while the other boy's head lay on his chest. Could picture tugging gently (or roughly) on it while they kissed passionately. And his _body, dear god his body._ His white long-sleeved shirt clung to his biceps and outlined the definitive, toned curves so wonderfully that Blaine could only imagine being pinned down to the bed as those arms held him tight, not allowing him to move. His mind wandered, allowing him to imagine what his stomach must look like if his arms looked that way. It was probably just as toned and glorious, would be perfect for Blaine to lick up and down as he teased his way downward. Downward toward a wonderful, hard, red-

"Here's your coffee, sir. That'll be $3.45, please," the other boy interrupted his thoughts, just in the knick of time too as Blaine was starting to feel his dick getting hard in his too-tight jeans.

He shook his head, bringing himself back from his thoughts. He didn't even know the other boy's name and he was already picturing being fucked into a mattress while the other boy pinned him down with those delicious arms. _Shake it off, Blaine. _Blaine handed him the money and thanked him, going to sit at a nearby table by the window. He was the only one in the place and it was so quiet you could hear a pin drop. Of course, at this time of the night he didn't expect the place to be crowded, they were probably close to closing time. Every few seconds, as he sipped his coffee, he'd chance a glance over at the other boy, who was now in front of the counter in the seating area cleaning off tables. As he leaned over, reaching for opposite sides of the tables he was wiping down, Blaine blatantly stared at his ass, taking in everything about it that he could; how round it was, how firm, and when his shirt climbed up his back because he had reached too far, Blaine almost groaned out loud at the back dimples that were just above his ass. He bit down on his lip so hard that he almost broke the skin. Of course now he was completely hard in his pants and he had to shift in his seat to ease the discomfort. It didn't work. He got up, throwing his half-drunk coffee in the garbage and headed for the bathroom to fix his problem.

Blaine threw himself into the first available stall he could and yanked down his pants. _Christ. _How had he gotten so hard just from staring at someone else's ass? Well, of course it was more than just his ass. It was also his arms, and what he imagined to be his stomach. It was the way he knew the other boy's lips would feel against his own, against his chest, against his hard dick. It was the million different scenes Blaine conjured in his head about how he'd be fucked, or would fuck the other boy. He might not be the most experienced boy at Dalton Academy, and in comparison to guys like Puck and Sebastian he was pretty much a virgin, but he knew what he was doing, and he wanted to be doing it to this boy.

With all of these images running through his mind, his hand reached down and grabbed at his now throbbing dick and he began stroking himself, groaning lightly as the tension drained and he started finding his release. Just as he was starting to feel the pressure and heat form in his abdomen and his entire body begin tingling, he heard the bathroom door open and he stopped dead. He held his breath, hoping the other boy was just coming in to clean up and then leave. When the sound of footsteps came to a halt in front of his stall and someone pushed the door (that in his haste Blaine had neglected to lock) open, Blaine almost died from humiliation. There he was, in all of his beautiful glory, standing and staring at Blaine, naked from the waist down, hard dick in his hand.

Blaine let go of his dick, feeling even more embarrassed when it seemed to grow even harder and bounced up and against his stomach. He immediately reached down to grab his pants and pull them up, simultaneously trying to make up a story in his head that would explain this without him looking like a perv who got off in public bathrooms. Without fully thinking it through, Blaine started spluttering out an explanation. "I-I-I know what this might look like," he said, pants at his knees now, "but, but I'm not some pervert who just jerks off in coffee shop bathrooms. I-I was at a party and I was uh, really drunk, and uh," he stuttered, pants moving past his mid thigh,"I think the, uh, the alcohol, just fucked with my head, and I don't really know, like, the chemical process for it, or whatever," he started ranting and rambling, pants at his hip now, "but I think the alcohol messed up my blood flow or whatever, and um, I was drinking my coffee, and then," at this point, he was fumbling to put his still-very-hard dick back into his pants, which was taking some time considering his hands were shaking and he was also focusing on trying to make this story seem plausible, "then it just happened, and I didn't wanna seem like some pervert or whatever, so I-I-I came in here, to, um," he had finally succeeded in tucking his dick away and was close to finishing his explanation, entire body shaking and face redder than a tomato, when the other boy moved closer and pressed his fingers to Blaine's lips.

Blaine gasped at the contact. His dick was rebelling against him in his pants, pressing hard against the open zipper and rough material and making Blaine whimper. "Just. Stop. Taking," the other boy said, voice so low, scratchy and seductive that Blaine almost came. He nodded his head in response and waited for the other boy to do something, confused and unsure of what was going to happen. He could only imagine what _could _happen, but dear _god _if it actually _did _happen Blaine thought he'd die. And just as he thought this, the other boy moved even closer, sealing their chests together and standing so close that Blaine could feel his breath against his burning hot skin. The other boy reached down, tugging away the jeans that Blaine had just hastened to pull up in one swift movement. They fell, setting his dick free and pooling around his ankles. When the other boy looked down, he let out a loud groan. "Mmmmm. Big boy," he said, licking his lips and biting his lower lip. Once again, Blaine thought he would come right then and there. He reached his hands up to the other boy's arms, grabbing firmly at the biceps that he had been staring at only a few minutes before and moving up and down, exploring. Within seconds, the other boy's hand reached down and closed around his dick, squeezing and stroking. Blaine groaned loudly, the pleasure from the contact seeping through his entire body and finding residence once more behind his stomach. He was panting and moaning and trying not to be too loud, but he couldn't help it. His head was thrown back, learning against the stall, eyes closed, and he was so consumed in his pleasure that he didn't even realize the other boy had dropped to his knees. His eyes shot open when he felt soft lips and a wet tongue around the head of his dick. When he looked down and saw the other boy on his knees, taking Blaine into his mouth, he practically growled out a moan in response, moving his hands to the other boy's hair and tugging, just as he had pictured earlier.

"_Jesus fucking Christ,_" Blaine moaned out breathlessly. "I don't even know your name and you're sucking me off in a bathroom stall."

This only made the other boy suck harder, hallowing out his cheeks and pressing his tongue down ruthlessly against his bulging veins. He took whatever he couldn't fit in his mouth into his hand and started stroking and sucking simultaneously. This made Blaine absolutely crazy and he started thrusting into the other boy's mouth, seeking more friction, knowing he was gonna come any second if he kept this up. The other boy took him in stride, matching every thrust and almost challenging Blaine to give it all he had because he could take it.

"I-I'm gonna, I'm, _fucking god, _I'm gonna fucking come," Blaine panted out, groaning even louder a second later when the other boy removed his mouth and started stroking him so quickly and wonderfully that it only took five seconds before he was spilling come down the other boy's hand. Blaine's loud groan echoed throughout the entire bathroom, his panting breaths and tiny whimpers the only other noise to be heard. "Holy. Fucking. Shit. You've gotta be fucking kidding me," Blaine said, still breathing erratically and trying to come down from his high. He looked at the other boy, who was now standing up again, Blaine's come all over his hands. He stared Blaine deliberately in the eye before sticking his fingers in his mouth and sucking the come off of them, eyes closed and humming along with little moans as he did so. When he was finished, he smiled wickedly over at Blaine, who's eyes were so wide that it was comical. He let out a long, low groan and looked at the other boy, who was just standing there staring at him. "_FUCK. _You can't be _serious," _Blaine said, pulling up his pants efficiently this time, zippering and buttoning them.

"I'm actually _completely _serious," the other boy responded, moving closer to Blaine and leaning in as though he were about to kiss him. Blaine closed his eyes, prepared to feel strong, soft lips on his own. Instead he felt a warm breath against his ear as the other boy said," And my name's Kurt. Don't you forget it." When Blaine opened his eyes, the other boy was smiling innocently. He opened his mouth to speak, but Kurt turned around and was walking away from him. "Oh and by the way, we close in fifteen," he said, pushing through the door and heading back out into the coffee shop. Blaine was left standing in the stall, shaking his head in disbelief.

"Did that just really fucking happen?" Blaine said, talking to himself as he started walking toward the bathroom door. He couldn't suppress the small chuckle that passed his lips when he realized that yes, it had actually happened. Kurt, a complete stranger, had just given him a blowjob in the bathroom of a coffee shop- a coffee shop that Blaine didn't even normally go to. He suddenly felt extremely grateful that he'd been dragged to that dumb party and had a miserable time. If he hadn't left early and driven around aimlessly he might not have wound up here and, well, that would've been a _damn fucking shame. _

He walked back into the main store area and over to the table he'd been sitting at _before,_ grabbing his coat and getting ready to leave. He looked over at the counter, where Kurt was now closing out the register for the night, and obviously couldn't help feeling even more intrigued than he had earlier when he was admiring Kurt's body. He walked over to the register and stood waiting for Kurt to finish whatever it was that he was doing so that he could speak to him without screwing him up. Kurt didn't seem to have the same qualms about making mistakes and spoke as he worked, "So is there something else I can get you? Aside from coffee and a blowjob?" Kurt asked nonchalantly without looking up from what he was doing.

"No you've done quite enough, I assure you," Blaine said, smiling when Kurt let out a small giggle in response. "I just wanted to introduce myself. I'm Blaine. And you're Kurt. I won't forget," he added flirting. As he spoke Kurt finished, locking the register drawer and taking off his apron and hat. He set them in a small cubby just off to the side behind the counter and grabbed his own jacket from the coat rack right next to it. When he said he wouldn't forget, Kurt smiled and nodded, looking back up at Blaine from underneath his eyelashes as he put his coat on. The light caught his eyes once more and Blaine couldn't help but think how gorgeous he was. He started heading toward the door and Blaine followed. Once they were outside, Kurt locked up and turned to face Blaine.

"Well, Blaine, it was _really great_ getting to meet you. And I mean that both in the sense of you and I and your dick and I. I enjoyed both meetings quiet thoroughly," Kurt said seriously, flashing the same flirty smile as he had earlier in the bathroom.

"Oh, trust me, Kurt, we both enjoyed meeting you too," Blaine said, not missing a beat. "We'd like to meet you again sometime, actually. Maybe get to know you a little better, in more ways than one," he said, smiling seductively and winking at him. "What do you think?"

"I think I'm one step ahead of you. Check your phone." As Blaine reached into his coat pocket for his phone, Kurt turned and walked to his car. "I'll see you around, Blaine. Have a good night."

When Blaine checked his contacts he found 'Kurt Hummel' stored as a new contact and smiled widely shouting back, "I had a great night! You have a good night too, Kurt!" He couldn't help but laugh out loud when he heard the other boy giggle as he climbed into his car.

As he drove home, he tried to figure out how he'd explain this to Puck without it sounding completely made up. He knew his friend would never believe a word he said. Blaine Anderson, the boy who never went to parties or had a social life, the boy who stayed home watching reality television on Friday nights, the little grandpa who wore cardigans and bowties, got a blowjob from a stranger in the bathroom of a coffee shop? Yeah, that definitely sounds believable. As he kept driving and thinking about how he'd explain it, he found himself caring less and less about whether or not Puck would think it was true or made up. And by the time he got home he decided he wouldn't even tell Puck for now. The other boy wouldn't believe him anyway, so why bother wasting his time trying to convince him? It didn't matter. He knew it happened and Kurt knew it happened, and if he had anything to say about it, it would _definitely_ be happening again soon. He couldn't help smiling to himself as he turned off the car and headed inside.


	3. Chapter 3

When Blaine returned to the Lima Bean the following Friday to see Kurt again, he felt extremely tense. It wasn't that he was nervous to see the other boy, it was just that he hadn't spoken to Kurt well, _since_, and he didn't want him to think he was expecting anything. He knew he should have called Kurt at some point during the week, even shot him a quick text to see if a conversation developed, but every time he picked up his phone and found Kurt's name in his contacts he only allowed his finger to hover over the call button before ultimately shutting his phone and putting it elsewhere. He knew he was a chicken, knew he was being a coward; there was nothing to fear, after all. Kurt had voluntarily blown him, a complete stranger, and then made sure to add his contact information to his phone so that Blaine would have a way to reach him. Kurt _wanted _them to meet again. Kurt had pretty much made sure that they _would _meet again. But how would Blaine start the conversation? He didn't know a single thing about the other boy. The only things he did know were the glorious feel of his mouth around him, the taste and smell of him as they kissed, and the feel of wonderful, beautiful muscles underneath Blaine's hands. Those were all amazing things, but Blaine felt compelled to know more about the other boy. He wanted to know personal things about him, had spent the entire week since meeting him dreaming up things he wanted to know. Like why a teenager had a job at a coffee shop. And if he had any siblings. He wanted to know whether or not Kurt sang in the shower, if Kurt could sing at all, and what his favorite song to sing was. Did he like jam on his toast or butter? These were random things, extremely detailed things, Blaine was aware of this, but he just felt a deep desire to know the answers. He wanted to know more than just Kurt's anatomy, he wanted to understand what made Kurt, _Kurt._

He took a deep breath before opening the door. The overpowering smell of coffee attacked his nose all at once and he inhaled deeply, enjoying the scent. He took a few seconds to take in his surroundings. It was earlier than when he got there last week, so the environment was a bit more lively, a few people sitting around chatting and drinking their coffees, music playing on an overhead sound system. It was nice and warm inside, so drastically different from the frigid January air outside. Blaine shivered a little as his body adapted to the new temperature, rubbing his hands together and blowing on them for warmth. He looked behind the counter, searching for a familiar face, and, to his great disappointment saw none. He walked over and was greeted by a girl who looked completely unhappy to be there; judging by her monotone "What can I get you?", without ever making eye contact, he assumed his assessment was fairly accurate.

"Um, I'll just have a medium drip please, thanks," Blaine responded, still craning his neck around the store and specifically behind the counter, hoping to find Kurt. Once the cranky girl finished making his coffee, he paid her and went to sit at a private table in the corner. He took out his phone, finger hovering over the Kurt Hummel contact in his phone for the millionth time that week. After some thinking (more like internally debating with himself) he decided against trying to get in touch with him. He didn't want Kurt to think he was stalking him or that he was obsessed with him or whatever else him being at the coffee shop would imply. They'd only met once and knew nothing about each other. Blaine going back to find Kurt the following week would _definitely _seem creepy, and he really didn't want to turn the other boy off or give him the wrong impression.

After finishing most of his coffee and finally warming up, he threw out his cup and walked back to the counter. "Hi. I'm sorry to bother you," he said to the cranky girl. Her eyes remained downcast, never making eye contact with Blaine, which made him feel extremely uneasy. "I-I was just wondering. Last week I came in here on Friday night and there was a boy working in here, his name was Kurt, Kurt Hummel."

"Yeah, what about him?" the girl responded in her same monotone.

"Well, I was wondering if he'd be coming in tonight, or if he was here and just working somewhere else in the store?" Blaine asked, now feeling grateful that the girl refused to meet his gaze. He could feel his face becoming hot with embarrassment. Could she see right through him? Would she know why he was looking for Kurt? Had Kurt maybe _told _her about what had happened between the two of them? She didn't seem like the type of girl that Kurt would be friendly with, but Blaine reminded himself that he barely knew Kurt so it would be unfair to make that assumption. He shoved his hands in his pockets for lack of a better thing to do and stood waiting for the girl to answer.

"Nah, Hummel's not here tonight. Shifts change up every week so it's whatever you get stuck with, no fixed schedule. You some friend of his? Want me to give him a message for ya?" Blaine was so intrigued by the fact that she could be asking him questions without ever looking at him. He couldn't imagine having a conversation with someone without ever meeting their eyes. He wondered if she was always like this or just at work when she felt particularly misanthropic.

"Um, n-no, no. That's not necessary. I'll just get in touch with him myself, thanks. Have a good night," he responded nervously, turning around and practically running for the door. When the cold air hit his face he felt grateful, it had gotten so warm in there over the past few minutes of him making a fool of himself. _God, Blaine. _

Taking out his phone for a second time that evening, he opened a new message and entered Kurt's name as the recipient address. After thinking about what he would say for a few seconds he finally decided on a simple "Hi, It's Blaine :)". He had thought about adding in 'we met last week at the Lima Bean', but then he hoped that Kurt would remember that on his own without a reminder. If he didn't, then Blaine had a serious problem. He hovered over the send button before finally pressing it, a smile forming on his lips at his own courage. He walked to his car and put his phone away while he drove home, hoping that by the time he returned he'd have a response from the other boy.

* * *

By Monday morning Blaine was almost positive that Kurt had been nothing more than a figment of his imagination. He couldn't find him Friday night, despite the fact that the girl who was working knew who he was, and Kurt had completely ignored Blaine's text. Blaine considered texting him again, but then thought better of it, not wanting to make it seem as though he was sitting around waiting for Kurt to respond to him. He also didn't want to come off as one of those overly possessive insane types that had to micromanage everything and know what everyone was doing at all times. But why hadn't he texted back? Blaine considered the fact that Kurt had given him a false number, had pretended to be interested just to appease Blaine. But then he couldn't understand why Kurt would bother to go to all that trouble if he wasn't into it. Why bother adding in a fake number when Blaine wasn't around and then tell him to use it if he knew he didn't want to see Blaine again? Why not just tell Blaine it was a one time sort of a deal and that was that. It's not like they knew each other or had some history they needed to settle. It was all so completely confusing.

During lunch on Monday Blaine was sitting at the Warblers' usual table with Puck, Sebastian, Nick, Jeff and Wes. They were all discussing a party they had been at on Saturday night, this time the party had been at Jeff's house- his parents had gone away for the weekend. Blaine didn't really have much to contribute to the conversation so he just sat quietly eating his lunch and thinking about the situation with Kurt. Puck picked up on the fact that something was going on and texted him so that the other boys at the table wouldn't make a big deal out of whatever it was, or butt in if things were personal and Blaine didn't want them knowing.

**You're really quiet. What's eatin ya, buddy? **

When Blaine felt the phone vibrate in his pocket he almost choked on his food. He thought for a split second that maybe Kurt had finally answered him, but when he saw that it was Puck texting him, Puck who was literally sitting across the table staring at him, he rolled his eyes. Opening the text and reading it, Blaine did actually choke, mostly because of Puck's choice of words. Blaine knew it was just a phrase, but it was really _fitting _to his situation. Puck looked alarmed at Blaine's reaction but didn't say anything. He stared at Blaine, waiting for the other boy to say something or respond in some way. Blaine decided to send him a text back.

**You free after 7th block? I need your help with something. Everything's fine. Don't look so worried about me, dad. **

When Puck read the response he chuckled to himself under his breath, putting his phone away and nodding at Blaine so that he knew he'd be free to talk. Blaine had been avoiding telling Puck anything about Kurt. He'd decided the night that it happened that he wouldn't tell him anything because he knew Puck would find the story so farfetched that he'd never believe it. He didn't particularly feel like convincing Puck that he wasn't lying and making up some story just to seem like he was the normal teenager everyone else wanted him to be. If Kurt would have answered he wouldn't have thought twice about not telling his best friend, but since he had so kindly ignored him, Blaine felt pretty crappy and needed to vent. He'd thought about talking to Santana about it, but he knew that she'd just tell him to get over it or forget it or cross it off as another fuck and be done with it. It's not that he thought Puck's advice would be any better or more profound than his cousin's, he just thought his best friend would be a little more sympathetic to his situation. He knew Puck had a soft spot for him underneath that rough exterior. No matter how badass Puck tried to seem, when it came to Blaine he was nothing more than a loyal labrador. Blaine smiled fondly over at Puck. He really was so grateful to have him for a best friend, especially over the past few months since Cooper left. Puck was more like his brother than his friend. He knew he'd understand, no matter how otherworldly his story sounded.

* * *

"So let me just get this straight for a minute," Puck began, talking more to himself than to Blaine. "You're telling me, you went to some random coffee shop after the party last week and met some random dude." Blaine nodded and he continued. "He was so hott you got hard and went to jerk off but he came to the rescue and blew you instead. And then he gave you his number and basically told you he wanted to see you again?" Blaine nodded again, searching Puck's face to figure out whether or not the other boy believed him, but all he could read was massive confusion. "And then you tried to text him but he just ignored you?" Puck affirmed, trying to make sense of it all in his head. Blaine could tell that he was close to being in physical discomfort from having to process it all.

"That basically covers all the high points, yeah," Blaine replied, shrugging. "What do you think?"

"I think that I'm _really fucking proud _of you, buddy!" Puck practically shouted, clapping Blaine firmly on the shoulder and beaming at him with pride. "You went out and got some! And I didn't even have to push you to do it or beg you to pretend you were having fun! You just did you and got. shit. done!" Puck dramaticized the last three words by poking Blaine in the chest in between each word. When Blaine looked unamused Puck feigned crying, hugging him tightly and then pulling back, holding his shoulders. "I just, I thought this day would never come!" he screeched, wiping away a fake tear.

"Alright, alright, enough with the performance. Jesus, you're such a douche. I'm perfectly capable of getting a guy, I just _choose _not to, thankyouverymuch," Blaine said, turning his chin up and crossing his arms.

"Yeah, sure, Mr. Rogers. I bet your bowties and cardigans get you tons of ass on the reg. I bet you have to beat them off with your cane." Puck was laughing now and even though Blaine knew he was only teasing, not really being malicious, he was getting annoyed.

"Alfuckingright. We get it. I'm sexually deprived. So why don't you just stop being such an asshole for like a fraction of a second and try and help me figure out what the actual fuck is going on in my life, maybe?" Blaine asked, getting somewhat defensive but trying not to seem outright angry.

"What is there to figure out? You fucked, and then got fucked over. It happens all the time, kiddo. This is how the world of high school sex works. No one gets involved in real relationships. It's too much shit to deal with. Everyone wants to just have fun. I know you're all super sensitive and shit, but you gotta learn that everyone's just out for themselves in this. People wanna get laid and people wanna hook up and people wanna just do whatever makes them feel good. I guess for this Kurt kid, he prefers to get off in public. I don't fucking know. Point is, and I've tried to tell you this about a million times but you never fucking listen to a thing I say, you gotta just be free and have _fun _and just go with the flow. You're too serious. You worry too much. So you texted this kid and he didn't text you back. Oh well, that's that and life's tough and you gotta pick your cute little dancing tush up and go find someone else. You don't even know him, there's no use worrying about him or waiting for him. Seriously, buddy. Just forget about it. If he contacts you, then great, if not, then whatever, dude. You get what I'm saying?"

"Yeah," Blaine sighed, feeling defeated. He knew Puck would respond like this. It _was_ the most rational response, after all. He had thought all of the same things. He didn't even _know _Kurt. It was completely irrational and borderline insane to be thinking about this and worrying over it and dwelling on it. What an idiot he had been to think that someone as beautiful as Kurt could ever be truly interested in someone like _him. _As if a complete stranger would take a genuine interest in someone they blew in the bathroom of a coffee shop. Puck was right, he needed to just shrug it off and move on. "You're right. Thanks for listening to me vent about this. I know to you it's probably pathetic that I ever gave this a second thought, but you know how I am." Blaine shrugged again, looking down at his feet.

"Oh stop. You know I fuck with you and whatever, but at the end of the day, you're my boy and I'll always be here for you. Come here, buddy." Puck pulled him in for a real hug this time.

"Thanks, man," Blaine said, pulling away from the hug. "I know I might not say it all the time, but you're my best friend and I don't really know what I'd do without you. Especially since Coop left, I've just been so alone except for _them _of course." Blaine spat out the word them and Puck knew just by the tone exactly who he was referring to. "And it's just- it's good to know that somebody in this godforsaken world has my back and gives even the slightest shit about me."

"I give a lot more than a slight shit about you. I give a full blown explosive shit, one of those really great dumps when you just feel fantastic after. But don't go getting all sentimental on me now. Last thing we need is for you to cry all over my blazer- my mom just had it dry cleaned this weekend." Puck said, pulling on the lapel of his Dalton blazer so that his collar popped.

Blaine rolled his eyes again. "Have I mentioned yet today how much of an asshole you are? Cause in case I haven't I could always let you know again."

"I think I'm good. I'm fully aware of my asshole status. Proud of it." Puck replied smugly.

"Yeah, I bet you are."

* * *

It was 2:15 am when Blaine's phone started vibrating on his bedside table. Blaine was into his tenth dream by then and the sound didn't even make him stir.

"_Hi! You've reached Blaine Anderson. Sorry I couldn't catch ya, but leave me a message and I'll get back to you soon. Have a great day!" _

Kurt stared at the phone in his hand, debating whether or not he should leave a message. The last thing he wanted to do was start a stupid game of phone tag and leaving a message would probably avoid that. But then again, it was two o'clock in the morning and he _had_ avoided Blaine's text for three days already, how would he explain that? He eventually decided to not leave a voicemail and just send him a text back. _You probably should have done that in the first place, Kurt. Now he's gonna see a missed call and no voicemail and wonder why you'd even bother calling. You ignore him for three days and then expect him to answer you back just because you're good and ready? You've probably screwed this all up. Great job. _

After mentally scolding himself for potentially ruining things with Blaine, he composed a text to the other boy, rereading it before sending: **Hi, Blaine, it's Kurt. I'm sorry I haven't answered you until now. I've been really busy and completely forgot to answer. I hope everything with you is well and I hope to speak to you soon. :) **

Deciding that would have to do for now, Kurt put his phone away and turned out the lights in his room. As he got into bed, turned over and closed his eyes, he couldn't help but hope that by the time he woke up in the morning Blaine would have answered him. Of course, there was a chance, a very large chance in fact, that he had screwed everything up by not answering Blaine's message when he'd first received it. If that was the case, he'd make sure he fixed it. One way or another he was going to see Blaine Anderson again, and soon.


	4. Chapter 4

A/N: I'm sorry for the delay in posting, final semester of college is rearing its ugly head and things are getting tight. I'm going to try and update as frequently a possible, though that might not be as frequent as you'd all like. Give it about 3 weeks and it'll be MUCH better because i'll be graduated! Anyway, enough personal babble, here's the next bit. Time to learn about Blaine's past and meet a new character! Enjoy!

* * *

**Hi, Blaine, it's Kurt. I'm sorry I haven't answered you until now. I've been really busy and completely forgot to answer. I hope everything with you is well and I hope to speak to you soon. :) **

Blaine stared at the screen of his phone lost in confusion. When he rolled over to grab his phone and check the time, the last thing he ever expected to see was a text message from _Kurt. _At first he just started at the screen, at the name the message was from, at the time it was received. When he could feel the pressure forming between his eyes because his eyebrows were too tightly furrowed together, his hand absentmindedly reached up rubbed his face to ease the tension. He took a deep breath and read the message, feeling the pressure reforming as soon as he reached the smiley face at the end of it. He reread the message over a dozen times trying to decipher _why _Kurt was answering him. It was clear that he had ignored him originally, so why would he have even bothered to answer now? And what a lame excuse! He's been _busy? _He's been so outstandingly busy that he _completely forgot to answer? _As if. Blaine might not be one to play the field, but he sure knew from experience when he was the one being played. And if he was being quite honest, he wasn't all that eager to add Kurt to his long list of bad experiences.

* * *

First there was Jesse. When Blaine was starting Dalton he wasn't really sure he'd fit in, but then he met Jesse St. James and all of his problems seemed to melt away. Jesse was absolutely breathtakingly gorgeous. He had this glorious, beautiful head of hair that Blaine loved running his fingers through; messy with curls but still so soft and smooth. His smile was the perfect amount of imperfection; all beautiful white teeth that were so straight you could tell he'd worn braces in elementary school, but the slight snaggle of his canines hinted at the fact that he'd neglected his retainers over the years. His eyes were a sea of blue that had the overlooking green trees reflected in it. They were the most gorgeous eyes Blaine had ever seen, not just because of their color, but because of the love and care Blaine had seen there over the few months that they'd been together. They had been a wonderful seven months for Blaine. Jesse had been his first love and Blaine was sure he'd be his last. At first he was constantly worried because Jesse was a junior and he was a freshman, but Jesse reassured him constantly that their age difference was nothing to be worried about and eventually Blaine's anxiety subsided.

Blaine could still clearly remember the first time he and Jesse had ever met. He was a lonely little freshman sitting in the corner eating his brown-bagged lunch. It was the third week into the first semester of high school and Blaine hadn't really made any friends yet, hence why he was sitting in the corner and eating alone. He stared fixedly at his sandwich, his phone on the table at his side so that if anyone tried to interrupt him he could grab it quickly and create a diversion to get away or escape an awkward situation. He had just picked the crust off of the second half of his sandwich when a complete stranger, a completely _beautiful _stranger, came and sat across from him. The other boy didn't speak to him, he didn't even look up at him until all of his own brown-bagged lunch had been unpacked onto the table (a sandwich, apple and bag of potato chips). When he removed his sandwich from its bag and took a bite, he looked up at Blaine, whose mouth was slightly ajar, eyebrows furrowed together in confusion, eyes narrowed as he tried to send the images to his brain in hopes that maybe he'd eventually understand what was happening. He'd put down his sandwich, held out his hand and said "Hi, I'm Jesse St. James." He'd gone on to tell Blaine that he'd noticed him sitting alone there for a little over a week. He'd thought he was rather adorable and wanted to ask around to see if anyone knew him or knew whether or not he was gay. In truth, no one he questioned really knew anything about Blaine (He'd profusely apologized for this. He hadn't meant to offend Blaine by making him think he was a nobody and no one knew anything about him.) so he had decided to take it upon himself and find out. "So, are you? Gay, I mean." Blaine had answered him truthfully, though he wasn't entirely sure why he was opening himself up to a whole world of hate and vulnerability from a complete stranger. But no hate came, no reason to be vulnerable, instead, the exact opposite happened. Jesse's beautiful eyes lit up and he continued to carry on an extended conversation with Blaine as he ate his lunch.

From that day on, Jesse was inseparable from Blaine, regardless of his junior class status and how other people at Dalton might have felt about it. Blaine grew to realize that people at Dalton were pretty accepting of virtually anything that the rest of the people in Ohio were usually in strong aversion to, especially homosexuality. Being gay at Dalton was like being straight anywhere else. Blaine felt not only safe at Dalton, but he felt accepted and happy, and having Jesse by his side only reinforced that safety and heightened his happiness. It was three months into their relationship that Jesse asked Blaine to officially be his boyfriend. They'd been together for long enough that they both considered the other their boyfriend without the official title, but Jesse had set up an entire romantic evening, had serenaded Blaine and had asked "Would you please make this night one of the best of my life and accept the offer to be my boyfriend?" Blaine had agreed without any ounce of hesitation and he and Jesse had made love for the first time. To say that night was one of the best in his life would have been an understatement. Blaine couldn't recall a moment up until that point that he'd ever been even remotely close to as euphoric as he'd been with Jesse in that moment. He wanted to hold on to everything they had and make it last forever.

Unfortunately, four months and three days later, Blaine learned that things don't truly last forever, not even when you want them to. It was a gorgeous spring day when Jesse took Blaine out onto the Dalton quad and told him that they 'needed to talk'. Blaine could clearly recall the obnoxious sounds of birds chirping overhead, the way the trees were swaying consistently back and forth as a wonderful, warm breeze washed past them, how the sun was beating down on them so strongly and brightly that Blaine had wanted to close his eyes and slip away. Blaine knew that Jesse was from out of town, that he lived in California with his parents but stayed with relatives in Ohio during the school year so that he could attend Dalton. What he didn't know was that Jesse didn't "see the possibility of a long distance relationship actually working out." Blaine had loved Jesse and he knew that Jesse loved him. He was certain that no matter how many miles between them they would do everything to make that last. In a strange twist of events, however, Jesse didn't believe the same and he'd told Blaine that he thought they'd be better off if they ended it then and spent the rest of the school year working on just "being friends and getting used to everything" so that when he left for the summer it wouldn't be as difficult or weird. Blaine had asked if when he came back in the fall for his senior year they'd wind up getting back together; if there was a chance that they weren't _truly _over. Jesse had tears in his eyes when he'd told Blaine he thought they'd be better off if they just stayed friends and moved on to other people. He'd 'loved Blaine too much' to start the relationship all over again and then just have to end it for good once he graduated the following spring. When the tears finally fell from Jesse's eyes, Blaine leaned over and kissed them away. Jesse had smiled as more tears leaked out of his eyes and Blaine stood, said goodbye and walked away. Being friends for the remainder of the year didn't really work out. Blaine couldn't just be friends with Jesse when he knew he wanted and needed more from him. The following fall, when the school year started again, Jesse wound up finding a new boyfriend and forgetting Blaine entirely. Blaine spent the entire first month of that semester curled in a ball in his bedroom every night sobbing himself to sleep.

Blaine thought he'd never be able to get over Jesse. He was his first love, the first boy he'd ever kissed, ever slept with, every everything. You can't just get over that overnight. It was a breezy October morning when Blaine was running late to his History class. He was running from the dormitory to the history building when he'd bumped into a very tall, very handsome boy who looked very lost. Blaine had stopped to apologize for almost knocking the other boy over in his haste, but the other boy had been left speechless and had waved off his apology with a "No worries." It turned out that the boy was a transfer student and was looking to find the history building for his morning class. Blaine laughed at the coincidence of it all, telling the other boy that he, too, was on his way to his morning history class. He introduced himself and learned that the other boy's name was Sebastian Smythe.

Blaine was taken with Sebastian from the getgo, and Sebastian was even more smitten with Blaine. The boys started as friends, getting to know each other and falling even harder for each other in the process. Blaine had convinced Sebastian to audition for the Warblers, which he was already a member of, and the two used the group as a way of seeing each other more and getting even closer. Eventually, they wound up hooking up and starting to be more romantic than just friends. After three weeks of dating, Blaine took Sebastian back to his room, where candles and rose petals were waiting for them (Blaine knew it was cheesy and straight out of a horrible romantic comedy, but he couldn't help it.) and asked Sebastian to be official. Sebastian had blissfully agreed and they spent the night wrapped in each others' arms, kissing gently and exchanging terms of endearment. Blaine briefly remembered a similar night to that one, when Jesse had asked him to be his boyfriend, but he'd blocked it out and focused on the here and now with Sebastian. He was really falling for the other boy and cared about him greatly, the last thing he wanted to do was spend his time thinking about Jesse when they were together. He knew Jesse wasn't spending the nights he had with his new boyfriend thinking about Blaine.

Much to Blaine's surprise, he couldn't have been more incorrect when he had made that assumption. A month and a half into his relationship with Sebastian (right after New Year's and the beginning of Jesse's final semester at Dalton) Jesse had come to him and told him that he'd ended his relationship with his boyfriend because things "weren't working out anymore. He wasn't you Blaine." Blaine was completely taken aback. He was hurt and confused and angry and had no idea what to do about it. He had told Jesse that he was with Sebastian now, that he was happy, that he really cared about the other boy. He admitted that he'd spent an entire month crying over Jesse and wondering why he hadn't been enough for him while his new boyfriend had. He confessed that he thought he'd never be able to find someone else to love and care for the way he had Jesse. He asked, furiously, why Jesse had waited to come back to him and why he hadn't done this sooner. He was with _Sebastian now._ What did Jesse expect him to do? Dump Sebastian and go running back to him for the remainder of the school year until graduation? He knew Jesse would do the same thing then that he'd done to Blaine last year. It wasn't right and Blaine wasn't going to hurt Sebastian that way. But then Jesse had looked up at Blaine, with the same tears in his eyes as he had that day on the quad last spring, and asked "You care about him, but do you love him? Do you love him the way you loved me?" Blaine had no answer and Jesse took that as a confirmation that he was right and that Blaine still loved him the same way. Blaine told Jesse that he needed time to think and that he couldn't be around him right then. He'd asked Jesse to leave his room and not contact him until Blaine came to him first.

Blaine spent the next few weeks with Sebastian trying to sift through his feelings and understand how he truly felt. He cared about the other boy immensely. Sebastian had become one of Blaine's closest friends and he was unfailingly loyal to him at all costs. If not for Jesse coming back around, Blaine knew that he and Sebastian would have worked wonderfully, would have fallen completely and sickeningly in love with each other and would have lasted for a very long time. The problem was that Jesse _did _come back around and the feelings that Blaine had while they were together, and the hurt he'd felt while they were apart, tore him up and distracted him from developing his feelings for Sebastian any further. He tried to fight it, tried to ignore it, tried to forget about Jesse and move on, but it was almost impossible. The more he told himself to forget about Jesse and focus on the great thing he had with Sebastian, the more he thought about Jesse and couldn't think about being with anyone else. Puck had advised him that he was doing the wrong thing. He'd reminded him how brutally Jesse had ended things with him the previous year, how devastated he'd been. He knew his friend was right and knew that he should listen, but he couldn't bring himself to do anything or follow any amount of logic or reason. It's what his heart wanted and it was overpowering any and all rationality he might have had about the situation.

By the beginning of February Blaine ended things with Sebastian. He couldn't drag the relationship out any longer knowing that Sebastian was head over heels in love with him and he was being semi-unfaithful with his own feelings. it wasn't fair to the other boy to stay with him and string him along and make him believe they were on the same page. He'd told Sebastian it was just bad timing and that he needed a break to think about things. He'd explained that he didn't want it to be over, he didn't want them to be finished, he just needed some time to breathe and figure stuff out. Sebastian was completely heartbroken. He was blindsided by Blaine's need for a break, thinking that things between them had been going so wonderfully, and couldn't understand why Blaine was doing what he was. He'd told Blaine to "fuck off and have a good time with his feelings." and left him behind without looking back. Blaine felt guilty and horrible and completely stupid, but he also felt relieved that he'd done the right thing and stopped things before they went any further and even more damage was done. He knew what that was like and he didn't want that to happen to Sebastian on account of him. Luckily, a few weeks before the semester ended Sebastian told Blaine that things between them were okay and said he'd wanted to be friends, if that's what Blaine wanted, of course. Blaine knew the other boy was still in love with him, but he'd agreed because he wanted Sebastian in his life. They'd been okay ever since (up until the kiss at the house party), and truth be told Sebastian had become one of his best friends.

When Jesse found out that Blaine had ended things with Sebastian he automatically assumed that meant he and Blaine were going to be back together and was shocked and completely broken when Blaine told him that wasn't going to happen. Blaine loved Jesse and had told him so, but what Jesse did to him hurt him more than anything he could have ever imagined. The hurt he'd caused Blaine and the damage he'd done made it too difficult to start over or get back together because the sting of the bad would always trump the ease of the good. Jesse understood and reluctantly agreed to leave Blaine alone and not meddle in any of his future relationships. They said their final goodbyes, and when Jesse graduated that May, Blaine cried harder than ever before.

* * *

After showering, dressing in his uniform, and snapping himself out of his trip down dysfunctional relationship memory lane, Blaine still had no resolution about any of the Kurt business. Jesse was the only guy Blaine had ever been intimate with. He'd slept with Jesse many times during the course of their relationship, but since that ended almost two years ago, he hadn't had sex with anyone. He and Sebastian had fooled around a little bit, but nothing too extensive because they were only together for a month or so. And now Kurt comes out of nowhere and changes the game by blowing him the night they meet. He was nothing like Jesse or Sebastian and Blaine didn't really know how to handle him. Here was Kurt, dripping with sex, and Blaine, who'd only ever done it with one person. When Puck joked about how Blaine needed sex and never got any ass, he was only kidding, of course, but there was a weight of truth behind it. Blaine _did _need to find someone else. He needed to be able to have sex again and share that intimacy with someone other than just Jesse. The problem was that even if Blaine _wanted _that person to be Kurt, he wasn't sure that was the best idea. If Jesse had hurt him, Blaine could only _imagine _the damage that Kurt could do.

The one thing that Blaine _had _decided was that Kurt could wait just as long as he had for an answer, if he even got one at all. If Kurt could pretend he was busy and ignore Blaine for three days, well, then two could play that game. Blaine would make Kurt sweat it out just like he had. Maybe with a taste of his own medicine he'd see how shitty it feels to be ignored and he'd think twice about doing it to Blaine again. One thing he wouldn't do was answer back right away and make it seem as though he'd been waiting around for Kurt to finally answer him. If the other boy didn't like it, that was just too bad. Besides, Blaine wanted the chance to talk to Puck and see what he thought he should do before he made any hasty decisions.

After giving himself the once over in the mirror, he grabbed his bag and headed downstairs. When he reached the landing, his cellphone started ringing. Unsure who would be calling him at such an ungodly hour of the morning, Blaine groaned as he reached in his bag and pulled out his phone. When he saw the name that was lighting up his screen, he almost dropped the phone out of his hand. _Kurt Hummel. _As if on instinct, his fingers quickly hit the ignore button and he threw the phone back into his bag. Feeling content with his decision, he left the house, locking the door on his way. When he got into his car the phone started ringing again. Blaine knew it would be Kurt calling him back, but he wasn't going to give in that quickly. It was after the fourth time the phone rang that Blaine had enough. He reached into his bag, pulled it out angrily and answered it in the most annoyingly chipper voice he could muster through his frustration.

"Hello!"

Kurt remained silent on the other line for a second, surprised that Blaine had finally answered when he had ignored all of the other calls. "Um, hi, Blaine? This is Kurt, um, Kurt Hummel. We met at the coffee shop a week or so ago?"

Blaine feigned nonchalance and pretended for a millisecond that he hadn't remembered. He didn't want Kurt to think he cared one way or the other what was going to happen between them. "Kurt? Oh! Yeah! Kurt Hummel. What can I do for you?"

Kurt was semi annoyed with Blaine's casual tone when he was clearly so anxious about the conversation they were having. Rolling his eyes and huffing out silent exasperation he said, "Um, well, I was wondering if you got my text message. And well, what I was actually wondering is whether or not you'd like to join me for coffee sometime this week. And I mean actual coffee, yaknow, not what happened last time." Kurt let out a small nervous giggle and Blaine could feel a swoop in his stomach.

Cursing himself for this reaction, he paused to consider Kurt's proposal. He had only a few minutes ago decided that he would leave Kurt to wonder for at least a few days. He couldn't give in that quickly. If he did he was sure to seem desperate. "I- I don't know, Kurt. That doesn't seem like such a good idea. I mean, I know we decided after _everything _that maybe we'd keep in touch and see each other again, but I'm not so sure that was such a good idea. I think maybe we're just two totally different people in very different places and I can't see how anything would work out between us. It was nice, that night, what we did, but I'm not sure we should pursue anything further. Yaknow what I mean?"

Kurt definitely did not know what Blaine meant. He wanted to see the other boy again. He'd wanted to see him ever since that night and had been waiting patiently for Blaine to contact him so that they could start something. Now Blaine wasn't even interested. Well he wasn't going down without a fight. "I mean, if that's how you really feel, then sure, I understand. But before you jump to wild conclusions about what could or could not be between us, why don't you just agree to one teeny little coffee date first. If you absolutely hate it and still think the same way about where we'd wind up going in the future and how things would play out, then I will leave you alone and won't contact you again. But at least give me one chance to show you that you're probably really wrong. Please? I don't want to beg, and that's not what I'm trying to do, but I just don't want you to make any rash decisions that we could both wind up regretting. Please? One coffee?"

Blaine inhaled deeply. He wanted to have coffee with Kurt, he really did. There was nothing else he wanted more than to get to know the other boy and maybe have something develop between them. But what his head and his heart were telling him were two very different things, and from experience he knew he should probably listen to his head, not his heart. Listening to his heart would only get him into trouble and a whole lot of hurt down the road. "I'm sorry, Kurt. I just, I don't think I can agree to that right now. Maybe give me some time to think about it and I'll get back to you?"

Kurt sighed, defeated. "Yeah- yeah sure. Take the time you need and just give me a call back when you're ready. If you're ever ready."

"I will, thanks, Kurt. And if I don't speak to you, be well," Blaine said, slamming his hand down on the steering wheel in frustration. _This is not how things were supposed to go. _

As he was about to hang up he heard a quiet voice on the other end and pulled the phone back to his ear. "Just- Blaine, before you hang up. Just please think about this and give it a chance. I know you have hesitations about it and I understand that. But I really do want to get to know you better. I hope you feel the same. And I hope to see you soon. Goodbye, Blaine."

Blaine pulled the phone from his ear, disconnected the call and threw his phone onto the passenger seat. "Goodbye, Kurt."


	5. Chapter 5

When Blaine got to school he was beyond irritated and knew that there was no way this day would be anything less than horrendous. He was only awake for two hours and already he wanted nothing more than to go right back home, curl into his bed and go back to sleep. And his desire had nothing at all to do with exhaustion, he'd been completely rested until that phone call. _That phone call._ He still couldn't actually believe that Kurt had called him incessantly until he'd picked up. What was he expecting? That he'd ignore him and then call when he felt like it and Blaine would just be fine and dandy with that? But then, he'd been so sincere on the phone. Blaine could hear the hurt and disappointment in his voice when he'd told him he wasn't sure he'd be able to see him. He could hear him silently sighing when Blaine said they were two different people and they'd never mesh well together. He hadn't thought that initially. When he'd first seen Kurt at the Lima Bean, when they'd first met, and then when they'd spoken after, Blaine had instantly felt a connection to him that he'd never felt with anyone else, not even Jesse. He'd felt completely drawn to Kurt, more than just physically, like his heart was attached to Kurt's by an invisible string that was pulling him towards the other boy. Like fate had made him go to that random coffee shop and meet Kurt so that they could be together. He knew that sounded more gay than anything he'd ever thought before in his life, but he couldn't shake the feeling. There were just so many things that weren't at all coincidence. But why had Kurt ignored him? If he was so upset when Blaine had declined his invitation to coffee, why hadn't he just answered when Blaine had originally texted him? It made no sense. It seemed obvious that Kurt felt the same way about Blaine, so then what was going on?

Rather than trying to figure him out or make up fake excuses in his head, Blaine decided he'd just text the other boy and ask him why there was a delay in his response. He wanted to _really _know why Kurt hadn't answered him. He knew he had emotional baggage, what with Jesse and all, so he'd be perfectly fine with Kurt being hesitant because of his own past, but he had to know one way or another. Before he did anything though, he wanted to talk to Puck and see what he thought about the latest updates to this saga. He figured he'd get a chance to talk to the other boy during lunch period and get his opinion before he did anything he'd regret.

When he arrived at his locker to pack in the books he'd need for his morning classes, Puck came up from behind him and poked him on the shoulder, walking around to the other side immediately after to pull one of those "It wasn't me!" jokes that Blaine hated and loved simultaneously. It was Puck's signature move and Blaine had gotten so used to it that he never even bothered to look at the side where he'd actually been poked, but to the opposite side where he'd known Puck would be waiting. Puck's slightly disappointed face was always comical.

"What's up, amigo?" Puck had asked, rather chipper for such an early hour of the morning, which was unusual to Blaine.

"What's got you so perky this morning?" Blaine asked, closing his locker and leaning against it.

"Well let's just say I had a _pretty_ fantastic night last night, if you know what I mean," he said winking. Blaine rolled his eyes. Yeah, he knew what he meant. With Puck, it could only ever mean one thing. He wondered who the girl had been, not sure if he even wanted to start this conversation and hear all of the details. Puck _loved _details, and Blaine always wanted to run away, especially when Puck was describing in step by step process the way in which he'd gone down on whatever girl he'd been with. It was almost always the same recount, but he'd put a little spin on it with every different girl so it didn't get 'boring'. (Or so he claimed. Blaine was almost positive that Puck would never be bored of vagina). Blaine hated hearing about that stuff, but Puck was his best friend and it was his duty to listen and pretend he didn't wanna vomit.

"Who's the girl?" He asked, folding his arms and getting into the feigned interest mode he always did when it was time to listen to these stories.

"You don't know her. Some chick I met a couple of weeks ago at a party. We hooked up at the party and exchanged numbers for future reference. And _thank god we did. _It was the best head I've gotten in like, two years. The things she could do with her _tongue _and the perfect amount of suction and ohmygod it was just fucking amazing. I came in like a second. Well, no, I'm exaggerating, you know I have awesome stamina, but I came much quicker than I usually do. I couldn't hold back. She was like, perfect at it, had me practically screaming. When I came down from my high I couldn't help but be more than excited to return the favor. I tried this new thing on her, something I read about on the internet. I pretended that her clit was a straw and I was just sucking on it the same way I'd drink through a straw. And then every few seconds I'd swirl my tongue around and press down real hard or maybe nibble on it a little bit. Lemme tell ya, dude, she was falling apart. I read that the ladies love it when you use more suction down there, so I tried this, and they're fucking right. She was screaming and moaning and writhing around me. She was so wet for me. It was fucking great. When she came she was screeching my name in a _chant. _'_Oh Noah, NOOOAAHH, NOAAHHOOOHHH. OOOOHHNOAHHHOHOHNOAHOH.' _I was getting hard all over again just listening to her scream my name. Needless to say, I'll be calling her again soon. Hopefully we'll have more time and actually be able to fuck. If she's that good with her tongue I could only imagine how good a fuck she probably is. But _god _do I wanna know now."

"And all that on a Monday night. Can't imagine what you'll do the rest of the week," Blaine said sarcastically.

"Whatever, dude. I'll take it on a Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday-"

"Yeah, yeah, I get it, no need to list every day of the week. I'm pretty sure I learned those in pre-K," Blaine said, cutting Puck off and moving away from his locker. They had to start walking towards their first class otherwise they'd be late. "You needa get anything from your locker? Or can we just go?"

"Nah, I'm good. So what'd you do last night? Still sitting around waiting for that Kurt kid to answer you? Or have you finally decided to take my advice and stop giving a shit?"

"Actually," Blaine said, a hint of snappiness to his voice, "he texted me last night." Puck raised his eyebrows and curved his lips down in an 'Oh really' gesture. "I got it this morning when I woke up. He had called me and when I didn't answer he texted. So I ignored the text, figuring if it was okay for him to ignore me than I could do nothing less than return the favor. But then he called me again, and when I ignored that he kept calling and calling until finally I couldn't take it anymore and I finally answered." Blaine paused, recounting the events of the morning for the dozenth time since it had happened.

"And? What'd he say? Don't leave me hanging here," Puck said, turning to stare expectantly at Blaine.

"Well, he apologized for not getting back to me and asked me to go out for coffee with him. But!" Blaine put his hands up as if to tell Puck to hold on before getting too excited, which was what was happening. Puck always got overly excited when Blaine met new guys. Blaine knew it was both because he wanted Blaine to get laid and because he wanted him to finally put Jesse behind him. He'd been there through the entire Jesse thing and he had watched Blaine cry about it too many times for his comfort. "I told him that I wasn't sure we should, that I thought we were really different people and we'd never be able to get along well so we might as well not even try."

"You did _what?!" _Puck practically shouted, and Blaine knew that if they were anywhere but in the middle of the Dalton hallway he'd be screaming at him right then. "You meet this super hott guy who you're instantly into, and he's _obviously _into you as well, and he tells you he wants to try and go out and see where things could go, and _you tell him you don't think so. _You're kidding me right? Please tell me this is a joke and you actually dreamed this or you're making it up just to fuck with me. Is it April fool's day or something? What's the date?" Puck was looking around the hallways aimlessly for a calendar.

"It's January 18th, Puck. And no, I'm not kidding or making it up to fuck with you. I just don't think it would be a good idea to start something with him when he obviously doesn't know what he wants. We both know I have a bad track record and I don't need to be adding another failure to that list and wind up with my heart broken again because I'm too invested and he doesn't give a shit about me. You know what happened with Jesse. You should understand why I feel this way and why I'm doing this." Blaine looked at him expectantly, a pained expression on his face that didn't settle well with Puck one little bit.

"Oh no, NO. NO! Do _not_ bring out that Jesse shit again. I'm so tired of this fucking guy haunting all of your relationships and keeping you in some fucked up state of mind about dating and meeting new guys. You loved Jesse, yes, you were great together and it was a great relationship while it lasted. But bro, all good things come to an end. And yeah, he came back around like a real fucking douchebag and tried to string you along again, but you were strong then and you walked away from him and you moved on. You _deserve _to be happy, Blaine. You deserve to meet someone new and start a relationship and fall in love and do all that sappy gay shit that you people love doing. Not everyone is going to be Jesse, okay? Not every guy you meet is gonna be a fucking pansy and wanna end things because he's too much of a shit to make things work and last. Not every guy is gonna act like an asshole for his benefit without consideration of your feelings. You're gonna meet a guy someday who is gonna fall for you and care about you and make you feel the same way that Jesse did, except he's not gonna wanna walk away from you. He's not gonna be a shithead that throws away a perfectly wonderful relationship that he's happy in because he's too scared to put any real effort into it. He's gonna be perfect for you and you're gonna be perfect for him, and everything is going to work out and you're _going to be happy, Blaine. _You just have to let someone else _in _so that it _can _happen. You can't keep pushing away every new guy you meet with some lame excuse about how it won't work out because you're afraid it'll wind up being like Jesse. Maybe it will. Is it possible? Yeah, it is. There are plenty of Jesses in the world. But does that mean it's a definite? Absofuckinglutely not. And this Kurt guy, he's someone _new. _He's someone that could be good for you if you got to know him and just _let him in._ And I know I sound like Dr. Phil or some crazy lesbian mentor, but everything I'm saying is the truth. And as your best friend, and as someone who knows you better than anyone else does, I'm commanding you to get the _fuck _over Jesse, like yesterday, and _move on. _Call Kurt back and tell him you were mistaken and that it was too early in the morning to process what was happening. Make up some excuse as to why you were batshit crazy for a couple of minutes and tell him you'd _love _to go for coffee with him. And then you'll get dressed in those little cardigans and bowties that you always do, and you'll pull yourself together, and you'll drive your ass to that coffee place and you'll meet him for a nice cup of coffee. And once you get to know him, _really know him_, then you decide whether or not things are gonna work out. And if you think no, then you end it. But I'm telling you that you have no choice but to do this, because if you don't, I'll do it for you. Do you understand?"

"Yeah, dad. Sure, I understand," Blaine said, entering their classroom and walking to the back where they usually sat together.

"Oh don't give me that 'dad' shit. I'm not trying to be a parent, I'm trying to be a _friend. _And as your best friend, I'm obligated to tell you that you're being a moron and that you need to fix it. Now. I know nothing about this kid, and to be honest, I don't give a shit if he gets hurt or not, but I do know about you and I do care if you get hurt. I know this is what you want and I know you're only avoiding it because you have all this emotional Jesse baggage. But it's time to put that shit in the back of the closet and get out there with someone new. And maybe that person is Kurt, and if you run from it, you'll never know. So please, take my advice for like, one time in your entire life, and just call him back and take him up on his offer? Please? For me?"

Blaine thought about what Puck was saying and knew he was right. He'd spent the better part of the morning thinking about Jesse and comparing Jesse and Kurt and using Jesse as an excuse to not see Kurt again. He _was _afraid, and he _hated _feeling that way. Because if Kurt did turn out to be like Jesse, he'd wind up falling in love with him just in time for the other boy to leave him alone and broken. He couldn't deal with that possibility.

"I guess you're right. I was planning on texting him first to really figure out why he hadn't answered me. He didn't really explain it, just claimed he was busy, so I wanted to see what he gave me as a real reason if I asked him. Good idea? Or no?"

"That's fine. Do whatever you gotta do to feel comfortable about it and then tell him you'd like to go for coffee just like he asked you earlier. Deal?"

Blaine considered this for a second, the bell signaling the start of class shrieking above his head, and then he looked over at Puck and smiled. "Deal."

* * *

Kurt spent the entire day walking around the halls of McKinley like a zombie. He wasn't sure why he was so deeply affected by Blaine turning him down, but he just felt completely horrible about it. When he'd met Blaine, something about the other boy had instantly attracted him, and then when he looked into those honey hazel eyes, he was done for. The little bit of time that they'd spoken he'd put up a rough exterior and tried to make it seem like he was all flirty and seductive and in complete control, but on the inside he was an absolute disaster. Every word that came out of his mouth sounded forced and shallow and he wanted to slap himself for sounding like an idiot. But when Blaine was going along with it and seemed excited and interested, he figured he was probably doing something right, so he kept on doing it. He realized he might've been leading Blaine to thinking that he was something other than what he was, but he didn't have enough time to reverse and be himself instead. He was so hoping for the opportunity to show that side of himself to Blaine when he'd seen him next, but now it was looking like that would never happen. Kurt wished more than anything that he would've acted differently the night they first met. Maybe then Blaine wouldn't be hesitant about meeting again and making excuses as to why they shouldn't.

In all actuality, Kurt wasn't that experienced, and he _definitely _was not a naturally flirtatious person. He was extremely dorky and shy and reserved and didn't usually throw himself out there the way he had with Blaine. What happened between the two of them at the coffee shop that night was so out of character for Kurt that he'd wondered the entire rest of that evening whether or not Blaine only wanted to see him again because he thought he was some kind of slut who blows guys in bathrooms. Kurt _never _did things like that. The fact that what happened with Blaine actually happened and wasn't a dream was completely surreal and insane to him. He couldn't believe he'd let himself do that, but somehow knew that if it was anyone else but Blaine he never would have. There was just something about the other boy that felt comfortable and safe, like he needed him. Maybe it was the homey color of his eyes, or the warmth and softness to his smile, maybe it was the cute little giggle that made Kurt's heart pound rapidly in his chest, he wasn't quite sure what exactly is was, maybe it was all of those things, but it definitely was _something. _Something about Blaine seemed familiar and like they were connected in some profound way. He knew it sounded ridiculous. He'd tried talking himself out of thinking that way since he'd met Blaine, but nothing was working. He couldn't get past the feeling that maybe he and Blaine were supposed to be together, somehow, someway. He wished more than anything that he hadn't screwed up too badly and that eventually Blaine would call him back and ask to take him up on his offer for coffee. If only he had called him back sooner…

Kurt was afraid of the way he felt about Blaine. He'd felt so strongly about him so quickly that it made him anxious. He'd wanted nothing more than to hear from Blaine so that he could see him again, but when Blaine had actually contacted him, he completely froze. He wanted so badly for it to work that he knew if it didn't he'd be devastated. He was setting himself up for a huge disappointment if he kept behaving the way he was. He knew it was probably stupid to ignore Blaine, but he honestly didn't know what to say without coming off too strong and scaring the other boy away. He figured if he waited a couple of days and thought things out more thoroughly before he responded he'd lessen his chances of seeming desperate or making a fool of himself. He didn't have much basis for comparison because he'd never been in a real relationship, and the few hookups he had over the past few years of high school had never meant anything to him. He'd always made sure that everything was kept secret so that the jocks of McKinley didn't find out about it and make his life and the other boy's a living hell. He already got abused enough without adding having a relationship on top of that. The last thing he needed was to be constantly tortured because he'd finally found someone to be with, and he'd never want someone else to endure that abuse too. It got really lonely from time to time, not being able to have a real relationship while everyone around him was pairing off, but he'd gotten used to it. His brother Finn was dating his friend Rachel, his friend Tina was dating his other friend Mike, then Brittany and Santana were together, and Artie and Sugar, Quinn and Sam, and recently his best friend Mercedes had snagged herself a football player. Literally everyone had someone but him. No one really knew about his secret hook ups, he couldn't even tell his best friends because he was terrified that somehow they'd let it slip to someone else and it would wind up floating around the McKinley halls. It really was a miserable life, but someone had to live it, he'd supposed.

With a little less than 10 minutes left of his Math class, which Kurt was paying no attention to whatsoever, his phone buzzed in his pocket. Figuring it was Tina or Rachel asking him what he planned on singing in glee today, he retrieved the phone from his pocket and hid it under the desk to read the text. When he saw Blaine's name on his screen indicating he had a new message from the other boy, his heart leapt into his throat and took up permeant residence there for several minutes. His entire body was shaking slightly and his head felt fuzzy. He was angry at himself for reacting so strongly, but he decided he didn't care because if Blaine was texting him back it had to be a good sign. Right? So then he'd have a good reason to be that excited.

He opened the message and read the text from Blaine: **So I was wondering, I never really got to ask you this morning because you cut right to the chase and asked me out, but why did it take so long for you to respond when I texted you? I just, I don't really get why you sounded so upset this morning on the phone when you couldn't even be bothered answering me when I had tried to talk to you. What am I missing? **

Kurt felt horrible after reading Blaine's text. What was he supposed to say? _I'm actually the complete opposite of what you think I am and I'm so inexperienced that I was afraid you wouldn't be into it. _ Or maybe _I don't meant to sound like a complete creep, but I was so into you when we first met that I felt like we were soulmates and wasn't sure if you'd ever feel the same, so I ignored you for a little hoping I'd wind up feeling better about it but never did. _After debating with himself for some time, he decided that he might as well be truthful. If the other boy was contacting him, he had to be changing his mind about things and the last thing Kurt wanted was to lie and wind up digging himself a bigger hole to sink into.

Hitting the conversation to respond, he composed a text saying: **Truthfully? When we first met, even though I didn't even know you, I really liked you. There was something about you that made me want to see you again and I knew it was irrational and stupid but I couldn't shake it. And I tried to not feel that way or think about you because even though you had my number you weren't calling me, but I couldn't stop thinking about you. And then you finally did text me after a whole week and I just froze. I didn't know what to say or how to say it without coming on too strong and scaring you away. I know I came off super confident and like I was the most sexually active teen walking when we met, but I'm actually nothing like that. I was only doing that to impress you. So when you took so long to answer back I figured maybe you just wanted it to be a casual, sexual thing. And I'm used to that, I'm not really a relationship type and I'm not that experienced, but I just wanted so much more with you and was afraid you didn't. So I'm sorry for not answering you right away, and I know I gave you a lame 'I was busy' excuse, but I just didn't know how to feel or what to say. And now I probably screwed everything up, and I'm so sorry. **

After reading through the text twice to make sure he'd said everything he wanted to, he hit the send button and watched as a really long paragraph bubble filled the screen of his iphone. After a few seconds it said it had been delivered and shortly after that it had been read. Kurt's heart was beating so fast and his mouth was so dry that he felt like he was chewing on cotton. He pulled his water bottle from his bag and took a sip as he waited for Blaine's response, preparing himself for what the other boy might say. A minute or so later, an equally long conversation bubble popped up on his phone and he took a deep breath before reading.

Blaine: **I know you think that sounds stupid, but it doesn't to me. Not at all. I felt the same way that you did and didn't want to scare you off. I figured if I got in touch with you too quickly that I would come off as desperate or creepy and you'd be uninterested. I'm sorry you thought that I had waited so long because I was only interested in sex. That's not how I feel at all. I want to get to know you, Kurt, I really do, but I have some serious emotional baggage and I'm just worried that whatever happens between us could lead to me being hurt again. And I know that sounds selfish of me, but I just don't really know how to handle you. Despite the fact that the whole enticing, promiscuous thing was an act, there's still something about you that I feel worried about. I think it's just me being afraid of screwing everything up and getting hurt, but I can't really place it. And then when you ignored me at first and responded with the busy thing, I just felt even more hopeless about it. I'm sorry if I'm not making any sense. **

Kurt read the text, completely shocked at what he was seeing. _Blaine felt the same way. _Kurt had assumed the other boy had felt something for him after that night. He wouldn't have wanted to get in touch with him or see him again if not, but he was completely awestruck when the other boy claimed to feel the same way that Kurt had. He was practically bouncing up and down in his seat with joy, trying ineffectively to contain his excitement. Luckily, the bell signaling that class was over rang out at that precise moment, allowing Kurt to jump up and run out to his locker. He switched out his books quickly and leaned back against his locker to respond to Blaine.

Kurt: **You're making perfect sense, there's no need to apologize. I'm glad you're interested in more than just sex. Glad is actually a really big understatement. But if you want to get to know me, why would you tell me all of those things on the phone this morning? Why make all of those assumptions about how we wouldn't work out? Despite how we may feel about each other we don't even really know each other. **

Blaine took no time to answer: **I guess I was just hoping that by saying it out loud I'd convince myself that it was true. I know we don't really know each other, and that's why I'm so anxious about all of this. I feel so strongly about you already without knowing anything about you. You have all of the potential to completely break me and I'm terrified that if I give you even more that I'll wind up being invested so much in you and you won't feel the same. Then I'll be the one left behind and hating myself for not listening to my instincts. But I talked it over with my best friend and he made me see reason and that I was being stupid for pushing away something that could be great for me.**

Kurt was reeling from all of this information. It seemed like Blaine really liked him. Maybe he hadn't screwed everything up after all. He wanted to dance around the hallways or scream on the top of his lungs or sing a huge belty solo number. The most he could do was smile from ear to ear while butterflies paraded around in his stomach and his heart beat out of control. His whole body was shaking slightly and he jumped up and down once when no one was looking just to shake out some of the energy. Then he clicked the conversation box and began typing out a quick response: **Well, thank your best friend for me, will you? Haha. On a more serious note, though, I know you're afraid. I can tell you've been hurt before and that you're worried it's gonna happen again, but please, I'm just asking you to trust me. I'm not proposing marriage or asking for a long term commitment, all I'm asking is for you to give me a chance. Have a cup of coffee with me and get to know me and then decide whether you think it's something that will be good for you or not. I don't mean to toot my own horn or anything, but I'm a pretty good guy. Lol. I won't hurt you, Blaine. If you give me the chance, I'll prove it to you. Just take a chance on me. One little chance. One little coffee. That's all I ask. **

After hitting the send button, Kurt began walking to his next class, arriving just in time and taking his usual seat. When he checked his phone he had a response from Blaine: **I don't know why, but I do trust you, Kurt. And I'm sorry for what I said this morning. I'd like to take back my original invitation decline and respond differently if that's okay with you? :)**

Kurt was typing with rapid fire. He wanted to respond to Blaine before he changed his mind. He was hoping that Blaine was going to text back and say he _did _want to go out with Kurt and that he had changed his mind. Kurt honestly thought it would take much longer, but he'd be completely lying if he said he wasn't relieved that it hadn't taken long at all. He answered back: **That's more than okay with me. What would you like to change that response to? ;) **

Blaine: **I'd love to have coffee with you, Kurt. When are you free? **

Kurt almost jumped out of his seat he was so excited. He contemplated asking his history teacher if he could be excused to the bathroom, but he knew he wouldn't be able to do much more in the bathroom than he was doing right now, what with jocks lurking around and just waiting for an opportunity to attack him like a hungry predator on prey. Smiling so brightly he was sure the people in his class must be staring and wondering what was wrong with him, he texted Blaine back: **I am free whenever you want me to be free. You just made my whole day. :) How about Saturday at 7? I have to work Friday night otherwise I'd make it Friday. And we can go somewhere other than the Lima Bean if you want. Just because I work there doesn't make me obligated to drink their coffee exclusively. Haha. **

Blaine responded within a few seconds but Kurt was so pumped with adrenaline that felt like he was taking forever to respond. **Saturday at 7 would be fine. And I don't mind the Lima Bean. It could be our little place. :) Unless you feel uncomfortable because you work there, then I don't mind going elsewhere. Totally up to you. **

Kurt was practically swooning when he responded: **The Lima Bean sounds great. Our little place. I love it :) **

Blaine: **Great. Me too :) I'll see you Saturday, Kurt. I can't wait to see you and get to know you better. **

Kurt _was_ completely swooning now. He was absolutely giddy. **Same here, Blaine. See you then! :) **

After sending the final text, Kurt put his phone back in his pocket and tuned back into his class. Suddenly, the Cold War was absolutely exhilarating to him.

* * *

Back at Dalton, Blaine couldn't remember why he'd ever felt uneasy about seeing Kurt again. After talking to him and making plans to see each other for coffee, Blaine felt the same, strong sense of being connected to Kurt that he had the first time they met. He was happy that he'd listened to Puck and spoken to Kurt and made things right. He owed it both to himself and to the other boy to see where things would go and whether or not they would work out before making mindless assumptions with absolutely no reasoning behind it. Sure he was afraid. Sure there was a chance that things may not work out and that one, or both, of them might wind up getting hurt in the end. But Blaine decided right there and then that it was going to be worth it. No matter what happened he was going to give it a shot and open himself up to Kurt and see where things went with them. There had to be a reason why Blaine felt so strongly about Kurt and why he wound up going to the Lima Bean that night. Kurt was going to be worth it, he just _knew it. _He could _feel it. _And he wasn't going to let anything or anyone come between that or break what they may wind up having.

Feeling content with the anticipation of the upcoming weekend, Blaine smiled happily to himself thinking "Jesse who?"


	6. Chapter 6

A/N: So sorry for the wait and how this has been dragging along. I'm finished with school now so these should be much more regular and less sporadic. Time for the fun to start! Enjoy!

The song that will be used in this chapter is called "Like We Used To" by A Rocket to the Moon. If you're not familiar with the song, have a listen here: watch?v=US46cHVj0-M I own nothing!

* * *

The rest of the week dragged by as the two boys anxiously awaited their upcoming date. They spent the week occasionally texting back and forth about their daily activities, trying to familiarize themselves with each other's routines. They left the more detailed things for Saturday night this way they would have an ample amount of things to talk about.

As the days passed and the weekend got closer, Blaine grew more restless and anxious about his decision to see Kurt. He knew he had made the right decision and he was happy with it, but part of him was still holding onto that gnawing feeling of fear at things that could go wrong. Over the past several nights he kept having these horrible dreams, not exactly nightmarish, but definitely not happy dreams either. They started out happy and light; he'd meet Kurt at their coffee shop and the two would be talking for hours about everything possible. He could hear Kurt's light giggle and the seductive tone of his voice at times throughout the dream. He could see Kurt perfectly: the sea blue of his eyes and the twinkle as the overhead light hit his iris in just the right spot, the perfectly defined jaw line as he turned his head to peek at new customers that walked in, the wonderful way that his fitted cardigan and skin tight jeans covered every inch of his body, hugging and accentuating curves and muscles. It was so real that Blaine was sure it was all happening in reality. After a while Kurt would tell him that he needed to use the bathroom and an immediate transition would occur. Instead of Kurt coming back to the table it was Jesse. He'd sit down and simply say Blaine's name to get his attention. When Blaine would look up, shocked that it was Jesse and not Kurt staring back at him, Jesse would say "It's always gonna be me, Blaine. You might think that you want Kurt, but you only want to find someone, some way, to get over me." Before Blaine would be able to respond, he'd hear Kurt's voice again, calling his name and shaking his arm to snap him out of it. He'd stare at Kurt for a few seconds in disbelief and confusion and then tell Kurt he had to go, running out of the coffee shop and leaving a hurt and confused Kurt alone at their table.

Every morning he would wake up with remnants of the same recurring dream and every morning he would hang his head in frustration. He didn't understand why Jesse couldn't just leave him alone. No matter what he did, the other boy just found a way to worm his way back into his life and screw even the best of things up. First Sebastian, now Kurt, Blaine couldn't take it anymore. He knew, of course, that dream Jesse was just a figment of his subconscious, and that worried him even more. Did he subconsciously believe that he'd never be over Jesse and that he'd be spending the rest of his life trying to find someone to fill the void the other boy left? On some level Blaine thought that could be true. Jesse had been his first love and of course it would be difficult to get over him and find someone to love the same way, but there's no way he truly believed he'd never find that again. Was there? No. That was why he'd be so hesitant with Kurt. He hadn't felt as strongly as he had with Jesse with anyone else, well, until he met Kurt. The first time Blaine saw Jesse, that first day at the lunch table, he knew he'd love him deeply for a long time. That immediate feeling of home and comfort, of safety and happiness, all of the things he'd felt instantly with Jesse he felt with Kurt even sooner and far stronger. It was completely insane and Blaine knew it, but after everything that had happened over the past two years he'd grown enough to understand how love worked and decided not to try and fight it. Something had led him to Kurt, and he wasn't going to let a couple of bad dreams get in the way of that.

* * *

On Saturday morning Blaine woke up after having the same, recurring dream for the fourth time that week. "Dear _God, _you've gotta be fucking _kidding_ me." He shook his head back and forth a couple of times, willing the dream to fall out of his head. When he looked at the clock and saw it was already 10:06 he was happy that he at least got to sleep in a little bit. Usually his mother would come walking in at some ungodly hour that shouldn't even be legal on weekends and tell him that she and his father were off to such and such charity/sporting/community service/political/country club event/breakfast/brunch/outing/meeting/conference. She'd give him the brief details of who, what and where and then she'd be off, but by then, he was already too awake to fall back to sleep. One more thing to add to his ever-growing list of reasons why his parents absolutely sucked. Since she hadn't woken him this morning he assumed that meant they must still be home. _Wonderful. _

After raking his hands through his messy curls and rubbing the sleep out of his eyes, he made his way out of bed and to the bathroom. As he brushed his teeth he thought about the possibilities of the evening. Kurt seemed like a pretty amazing person and Blaine was genuinely excited to see him again. He could feel the urge to know everything possible about him resurfacing from the night they'd met. That night, Blaine had wanted to learn every detail about Kurt, and as he wondered how their date would play out, he imagined all of the answers he would get. He would naturally ask all of the obvious questions, favorite color, favorite movie, if he had any siblings, and then if he felt that things were going well he'd delve deeper and ask more personal things like what he wanted to do with his life and where he wanted to live, what his biggest dreams were and what he feared most. He'd get to know all of the ins and outs of the other boy, grow accustomed to his quirks and become familiar with all of the intricacies that make him who he is. He'd tell him anything he wanted to know about him, even about his parents if he asked. By the end of the night, they'd be completely smitten with one another and they'd walk to their cars, sharing a sweet kiss before grudgingly parting ways for the evening. Before they'd even arrive home, one would text the other telling him that he'd had a wonderful evening and that he wanted to see him again as soon as possible. Plans for another date would be made and both boys would talk about how excited they were about the prospect of seeing one another again soon. Then they'd exchange pleasant goodnights and agree to speak the next day before falling asleep with smiles on their faces to peaceful (in Blaine's case non-Jesse) dreams.

Blaine shook himself out of his daydream and rinsed his mouth free of toothpaste before running a shower and turning on his iHome. He sang along to "All That Jazz" before hearing the beginning of a song that made his heart sink. A song that Jesse had recorded for him while he was with Sebastian because it had reminded him of Blaine and "made his heart ache for everything he had given away". He didn't even know the name of the actual band that recorded the song because the only version he'd ever heard was this one- Jesse's. Hearing his voice, especially after all of the dreams he'd been having all week, was the last thing Blaine wanted or needed. He made a mental note to delete the song from his iPod; a note he'd made way too many times before without actually doing it.

_I can feel his breath as he's sleeping next to me_

_Sharing pillows and cold feet_

_He can feel my heart, fell asleep to its beat_

_Under blankets and warm sheets_

_If only I could be in that bed again_

_If only it were me instead of him_

_Does he watch your favorite movies?_

_Does he hold you when you cry?_

_Does he let you tell him all your favorite parts_

_When you've seen it a million times?_

_Does he sing to all your music_

_While you dance to "Purple Rain"?_

_Does he do all these things_

_Like I used to?_

_I know, love_

_(Well, I'm a sucker for that feeling)_

_Happens all the time, love_

_(I always end up feeling cheated)_

_You're on my mind, love_

_That happens all the time, love, yeah_

_Will he love you like I loved you?_

_Will he tell you everyday?_

_Will he make you feel like you're invincible_

_With every word he'll say?_

_Can you promise me if this was right?_

_Don't throw it all away_

_Can you do all these things?_

_Will you do all these things_

_Like we used to?_

By the time "Raise Your Glass" started playing Blaine realized he'd been standing in the same position in the shower, practically frozen, listening to Jesse's song. Turning off the water, stepping out and drying off with a towel, Blaine reached over and shut off his iPod. "He will," Blaine said suddenly out loud, "He will do all of those things, and he will be better than you ever were, Jesse."

* * *

At 7:05 Blaine pulled into the Lima Bean parking lot. He hadn't intended on being late, he'd actually left his house early to make sure that he'd gotten to his date on time, but he sat in stand-still traffic for at least 20 minutes due to an overturned tractor trailer and a car pile up that had ensued as a result. Hoping that Kurt was running late as well, Blaine parked the car, checked himself in his car mirrors and headed for the entrance.

When he walked in, Kurt was sitting at the same table that Blaine had sat at the night they'd met. He was fidgeting nervously with his scarf and Blaine felt guilty for being late, cursing the traffic. He took a deep breath and walked towards the table, smiling in case Kurt looked up and saw him, which he, of course, did. It was as if Kurt constantly knew what Blaine was thinking. Blaine wasn't sure if he found it endearing or terrifying. Meeting Kurt's beautiful blue eyes melted away any fear or anxiety that Blaine had been having over the past few days, erased any remnants of Jesse and dreams about Jesse, and made Blaine feel the same sense of ease and immediate elation that he knew he would. His body visibly relaxed as all of the tension seeped its way out of his body and into the universe. The smile that Kurt returned could have lit up the entire town of Lima. It was the most gorgeous thing Blaine had ever seen, all teeth and crinkled eyes, and Blaine couldn't help but feel the adrenaline coursing through his body as his heart started beating on overdrive. He was _so glad _he had decided to see Kurt again. He couldn't believe he'd been so stupid and tried to avoid this.

_Thank god for Puck, _Blaine thought before reaching the table, sitting down and breathing out the word "Hi". It was like all of the air had been sucked out of his body and he was trying to regain the usage of his lungs in small amounts.

"Hi," Kurt semi-whispered back. Blaine wasn't sure if he was being intentionally quiet or if he was having the same physical abnormalities that Blaine was currently having.

"I'm sorry I'm late. I didn't actually mean to be. I left my house early so that I'd be able to get here early and I wouldn't leave you waiting. And then what happened was, well, it was totally out of my control, there was a massive overturned truck and then a bunch of car accidents. So I was just sitting in traffic and never moving. Thinking back now I probably should've texted you, but at the time I didn't even think about it because I was just totally frustrated that I was going to be late and that you'd be worried or nervous that I was standing you up. I mean, I know I could've been much later, five minutes isn't a crazy amount of time to be waiting, but still. I didn't mean for you-"

"Has anyone ever told you that you get kind of cute when you're nervous?" Kurt said, cutting off his endless, nervous ranting.

Blaine could _feel _himself blushing and let out the smallest of giggles as his stomach swooped. "Well, now someone has," he replied sweetly, looking down and playing with his fingers.

"So, should we get coffee? I think one of the necessities of a coffee date is a coffee, but I could be mistaken," Kurt said, eyes narrowing teasingly during the last part.

Blaine chuckled, _God he is so cute I can't even stand it. _"I think you might be right." As the two boys got up and walked to the counter, Blaine asked "So how have you been?"

"I've been doing pretty well. I won't lie, this week dragged on impossibly slow. It was like the universe knew that all I wanted was for tonight to come faster and it made sure time slowed down so that it would never get here." The unpleasant girl from last week was behind the counter and Kurt asked for a "Grande nonfat mocha for me and a…?" he paused, looking at Blaine and inquiring about his coffee order.

"Medium drip, please."

"And a medium drip. And we'll also take one of those sugar cookies. Thanks, Lauren," Kurt said, smiling at the girl as she monotonously went through the motions of ringing up and making their order. "But then this morning came and I felt like it came way too fast and I wasn't ready and I started panicking before I eventually turned on some music and sang my way through it to calm myself down. It's silly, I know," Kurt said bashfully, reaching for his wallet and pulling out enough money for their coffees and the cookie.

"It's not silly. I think it's adorable. I think _you're _adorable," Blaine said, also reaching for his wallet.

Kurt smiled at him as his neck, cheeks and ears turned a faint shade of pink. "Oh no, no, mister. Put that wallet away. You'll do no paying tonight. It's on me."

"But-"

"No buts. I invited you on this date and I intend to pay," Kurt smiled at him, reaching his hand out and placing it over Blaine's so that he would listen and put his wallet away.

Blaine stared at their hands for a second, basking in the feeling of Kurt's soft skin on his own and hoping that by the end of the night he'd know what the smooth feeling of his fingers felt like as they intertwined with his. Nodding in understanding, he put his wallet back into his pants pocket and continued on with the conversation. "So, Kurt, tell me more about you. The only thing I really know is your name, and I only know your last name because you put it in my phone, otherwise I probably wouldn't even know that," Blaine giggled nervously.

Their coffees came and they grabbed them and headed back to their table, Kurt answering his question as they walked. "Well, my name is Kurt Elizabeth Hummel, and no I'm not kidding, Elizabeth is my real middle name. It used to be Elliot, Kurt Elliot, but I had it officially changed to Elizabeth after my mom died when I was younger," Kurt said and Blaine was surprised with how easily he was opening himself up to him and sharing such personal details. Before Blaine could open his mouth and apologize about his loss, Kurt continued speaking. Blaine figured he probably didn't want to talk about it so he didn't push him on the subject. "My dad's name is Burt and my stepmom's name is Carole. I'm an only child but when my dad married Carole I wound up with a stepbrother, his name's Finn. He's the closest thing to a real brother than anyone could ever get. I know people believe in fairytales and think that stepparents and stepsiblings are always evil and horrible, but Carole and Finn are two of the best people I know. Carole makes my dad happier than I've seen him in years and Finn has been the best brother to me. It was rough at first, Finn and I, because he was sort of homophobic and stuff, but once he got through that initial bout of whatever it was he was dealing with, he really came through and was there for me tenfold. But enough about me, what about you?"

"Well," Blaine began, bracing himself to throw a whole world of personal ugly at Kurt. He'd asked and he'd been truthful about his own personal details, even some that were really tragic, so Blaine would do the same. "My name is Blaine Devon Anderson. I know it sounds completely pretentious and like I'm some regal douchebag, but I can assure you that I try my hardest not to live up to that impression. My dad's name is William and my mom's name is Susan, and well, they're not exactly accepting of my being gay. They're extremely conservative and politically and communally active and to have a gay son just won't do, yaknow?" Kurt nodded sadly but didn't pry him for more information. _Thank god. _"I have one brother, Cooper, and he and I used to be really close but he recently moved to LA to pursue a career in acting and TV and such, so it's been hard to keep in touch cause he's always busy and he's happy and I'm well, _here._" Blaine tried not to spit out the word here, but as he continued to talk about his home life he found himself feeling increasingly bitter. He didn't want to leave Kurt with a bad impression or scare him away, so he tried changing the subject to something more neutral. "I'm 16 years old. How old are you?"

"I'm 16, too, which is good cause I don't want to be a cougar or a cradle robber." Kurt laughed a high, pretty laugh that made Blaine's stomach swoop again and forced a laugh out of him in return.

"No worries then," Blaine said teasingly. "So I know you work here in the Lima Bean, but do you go to school too? I assume if you work here that you live nearby and probably go to school nearby too, right?"

"Good assumption. Correct assumption. i live about 10 minutes away from here and I go to school about 15 minutes away in the opposite direction. I'm a junior at McKinley. What about you? I've never seen you around the halls of McKinley, so either you're so tiny I just can't ever find you, or you don't go there," Kurt joked, taking a sip of his coffee and breaking off a small piece of the sugar cookie for himself and a small piece for Blaine.

"Already making jokes about my height are you? Okay, I'll get you for that one," Blaine teased, blatantly flirting. "No, I don't live near here. I live about 40 minutes away, in Westerville. I go to Dalton Academy, it's a private school. The kids can be kinda uptight, but luckily I found a solid bunch of kids there who are super cool. I'm a member of the Warblers, its our show choir, and the guys who are in the group with me are just super fantastic guys. My best friend Puck, the one I told you convinced me to give this a shot and not be an idiot, he's in it with me, and a bunch of other great guys. And we're pretty good. We actually have this huge rivalry with your school, well, your school has a rivalry with us because we're tons better and beat them almost every year," Blaine laughed and winked at Kurt teasingly. Kurt didn't laugh back. He didn't even smile. Blaine's entire face dropped as he realized he'd said something wrong and had probably insulted Kurt by insulting his school. "I-I'm sorry, Kurt, I didn't mean to insult your school. I didn't-"

"It's not the school, Blaine. I don't care what you say about my school. I don't even care what you say about the glee club, except, we have a slight problem," Kurt said, not meeting Blaine's eyes for the first time that day, which made Blaine even more uneasy.

"What's that?" Blaine asked, unsure of where Kurt was going with this.

"Well I know about the rivalry too. It's a huge deal at McKinley. I bet it's a huge deal at Dalton too, right?"

"Yeah, definitely. It's like mortal enemy status according to the Warblers. I heard that one time, one of the senior Warblers met a member of the New Directions, that's the show choir at your school, and they really hit it off and fell for each other. But then the other Warblers found out about it and told the council and they told him he had to end things with her otherwise he'd be _kicked out of the group._ When I heard that I was _seriously _confused because honestly, how far are they taking this stuff? But apparently they _are _that serious about it. The Warblers who I was talking with about it told me that ever since then, and even before then but it had just never been an issue until that point, it was pretty much a _rule _that no Warbler ever dates a member of New Directions. They don't wanna risk mingling in 'enemy territory'." Kurt's eyebrows shot up into his hairline and Blaine rushed to add, "Those were their words, not mine! I mean, don't get me wrong, I love the Warblers and all, but that's a pretty serious regulation. But nothing like that has happened in a while. The guy it happened to was a couple years before me and that was the first and last time it ever happened."

"Yeah, well, I think it's happening again. And this time much closer to home," Kurt said, nervously taking a huge gulp of his coffee.

Blaine's eyebrows furrowed as he sipped his coffee and slipped a piece of cookie into his mouth. "What do you mean?" he asked once he'd finished chewing.

"Well, the slight problem that we have is that you're a member of the Warblers," Kurt said, taking a pause before adding, "And I'm a member of the New Directions."


	7. Chapter 7

Blaine stared blankly at Kurt for close to a minute. His eyes were wide, eyebrows raised into his hairline but scrunched together at the same time, jaw slightly dropped and slightly frowning simultaneously. Kurt said nothing, simply stared back at Blaine and waited for the information to sink in. Finally Blaine blinked hard, closing his eyes tightly, and shook his head before speaking. Kurt could tell he was extremely frustrated. "So. What you're telling me is that our schools' show choirs have been feuding for decades. And when I say feuding I don't mean a small squabble between amicable competing groups, I mean full out loathing of the other. They're actually at war with each other. My school has mad it its life's mission to ensure that no member of the Warblers ever so much as _interacts _with a member of the New Directions let alone has a _relationship _with one of them. They've made it an _unspoken rule _that no one dates anyone from your school because we're 'fraternizing with the enemy'" Blaine sarcastically air quoted this statement as he grew even more frustrated with every word he spoke, "and they don't want to take the chance of anyone conflicting the group in any way. This is a legitimate and major problem that has been ongoing for years and the only person to ever go against this was almost kicked out of the Warblers. Am I correct so far?"

Kurt blinked at the question. He was sure Blaine would continue ranting for some time because he was seeming to pick up speed as he went along. "Y-yeah, that's right."

"_FanTASTic!_ So with all of that information on record, we now add in the facts that I am a member of the Warblers, and not just any member, but a Senior member who leads majority of the vocals and prepares arrangements for the majority of our music, and you are a member of the New Directions. We are supposed to be at war with one another, we are supposed to find _reasons _to avoid each other at all costs and we are supposed to make sure that we _never _associate with one another. If we don't, we run the risk of being kicked out of our groups. Groups that we love and groups that we've been dedicated to and groups that we've made families out of. I mean, I may be speaking completely one-sided here because I'm not sure how deep you're in with your New Directions, but the Warblers, those guys are my friends, yeah, but they're my _family _most of all. They were the ones who picked me up when I was down and couldn't get up. They're the ones who made me feel like I wasn't useless despite the fact that my parents told me the exact opposite." Blaine was becoming semi-hysterical at this point. He could feel his voice rising and the burning in his throat as pressure consistently built up behind his eyes. He couldn't believe this was happening. The first good thing that could have happened to him in so long and he couldn't have it. It was like running a full marathon only to be told that he wasn't allowed to cross the finish line. He took a deep breath before he continued, smiling at Kurt as he did. Kurt smiled back and he found himself slightly relaxing. "I know I sound hysterical. I know I'm ranting and freaking out and I seem dramatic, but you have to understand what a problem this is. Because this is a _big problem _for me. I-I can't _not _have the Warblers, Kurt. I just can't."

Kurt reached his hand over the table and grabbed Blaine's. He laced their fingers together and stared down at them as he closed his eyes and breathed in the feeling of that very moment. The soft yet calloused quality to Blaine's hands and fingers, fingers that were intertwined with his own. He opened his eyes and smiled at Blaine. "I know this is a big problem for you. I can tell you have some very heavy personal issues and I would never press you to tell me anything you don't feel comfortable discussing, especially since we barely know each other. I completely understand if you can't see me because you can't give up the Warblers. Those boys are your family and I can tell they are a strong support group that loves and cares for you, and that's something you definitely need right now. That's something I _want _for you, Blaine. I want you to be safe and happy and have that loving group of people who will always be there for you when you need them most. Tonight has been wonderful and it has been wonderful speaking to you and getting to know you for the past couple of weeks, but all good things come to an end, right?"

Blaine blinked the tears out of his eyes as he squeezed Kurt's hand and stared down at their fingers. They felt exactly as he had imagined earlier. It was everything he wanted. He breathed deeply around the lump in his throat and stared over at the other boy who released his hand and stood up. Blaine's eyebrows furrowed together in deep confusion. Where was he going?

"So thank you for a truly _wonderful _evening, Blaine. I had a great time and I hope you did too. And I hope you get everything you ever want in this world because you deserve every single thing and more." Kurt smiled, grabbed his messenger bag and slung it over his arm. He turned back to Blaine, leaned down and kissed the other boy's cheek. It was a soft, chaste kiss and Blaine found himself melting completely into it. His entire body was pulsing with energy but at the same time all of his limbs were numb and he was complete mush. "Goodbye, Blaine Anderson."

Kurt made to walk away but Blaine grabbed his arm and pulled him back. Kurt turned to face him, tears in his eyes that he was trying _so hardly _to avoid Blaine seeing, and stared deeply into the other boy's eyes, waiting for him to say or do what he meant to by holding him back and preventing him from leaving. Blaine stared back and breathed out the words "Stay. Please, _please _stay."

Kurt nodded and sat back in his seat staring at Blaine as the other boy pulled himself together. The silence between them was comfortable. It wasn't tense, it wasn't awkward, there was nothing forced or strange about it. Kurt found himself completely at peace despite how heartbroken he was. He could just _be _with Blaine; right there, right then, in that moment, just sitting and staring at the boy across the table from him. No words were needed, nothing needed to be done, they just needed to _be. _And they _were. _And it was absolutely amazing. Kurt was so angry that this couldn't last. He understood Blaine's feelings and he completely supported them, but he couldn't pretend that this didn't hurt. He wanted Blaine more than he'd wanted anything or anyone in a very long time and now he had to give it up. He felt like he ran downstairs on Christmas morning to a tree full of presents only to find out that none were for him. And it _hurt. _He started playing with his scarf the way he had earlier while he was waiting for Blaine. If he focused on something else he wouldn't feel how horribly sad he was all at once. After a few minutes, Blaine reached over and grabbed Kurt's index and middle fingers and pulled his hand across the table to his, lacing their fingers together once more. He caressed the top of his smooth, beautiful skin with his thumb and smiled over at the other boy as he did. Kurt smiled back, clearing his throat to try and fight back the lump that was forming there.

"Look, I don't know what to do here. Of all of the things that I thought could go wrong between us this never even crossed my mind as an issue."

Kurt nodded. "I understand, Blaine. You really don't need to explain this. I'll just go and be out of your way and you-"

"Dammit! Will you just stop saying you're gonna leave or keep trying to leave or whatever it is that means we're saying goodbye right now?" Blaine's tone was loud and Kurt could tell he was really angry.

"I-I'm sorry," Kurt stammered, his face turning bright red as he tried to remove his hand from Blaine's. Blaine held onto it even more tightly, preventing him from moving away.

"No. No. Ugh, god. I'm the one who's sorry. I never should have raised my voice. I didn't mean to yell at you. I'm just _so incredibly frustrated_. And I'm so sad. And even though I barely know you I feel like my heart is _breaking_."

"_Blaine," _Kurt started, but Blaine interrupted him.

"No, Kurt, please, let me just say all of this. If I don't get this all out now then I'll never have the courage to do it and I need you to hear it. All of it." Blaine paused, taking a deep breath. "I _really _like you Kurt. The first time I saw you something inside me just clicked and I found myself wanting and _needing_ to know everything that I possibly could about you. I wanted to know your favorite color and what your favorite movie was. I wanted to get to know the real you and learn about your likes and dislikes, what you dreamt about and what gave you nightmares. I wanted to accumulate every single piece of the Kurt puzzle and put it together and make sure that I could keep it safe, that I could keep you safe. I didn't even know you and I felt safe and home when I looked into your eyes. Every bad thing, every feeling of fear or anxiety melts away when I'm around you and I can just relax and be myself. There aren't many people who make me feel this way, safe and comfortable and okay. Usually it takes me a really long time to open up to people and allow them to know the real me. When you open yourself up to people you let in a whole world of hurt and pain and sadness, you put yourself completely at their disposal and allow yourself to be completely vulnerable to them. They have every capability to tear you apart. I don't trust easily and I don't let people in that easily. It's probably because my parents, the people who are supposed to love me the most in this world, have made it more than clear that I'm worthless to them and that's made me bitter and cynical and closed off to people." Kurt squeezed Blaine's hand and Blaine closed his eyes and took a deep breath before continuing. "The Warblers, Puck, my best friends, those relationships are what they are because they developed over time. A lot of time. Puck's been my best friend since I was little and not so untrusting, but the rest of those guys, it's been three years of school, of practices, of spending all of our time together and most of them _still _don't know the real me, the me that Puck knows. It's really hard for me. The only person I have ever felt this way about before, this instant connection and this feeling of home, was my ex-boyfriend Jesse. Jesse and I met and I felt all of the same things that I felt for you. I wanted to know everything about him, I wanted to get lost in his eyes, I wanted to spend all of my time getting to know his ins and outs and what made him who he was. I just wanted _him_. I looked into his eyes and I felt safe. I expected the worst and I got the best." Kurt felt slightly uncomfortable as Blaine continued to talk about his ex as though he was the most wonderful person in the world. He tried to pull his hand away and Blaine sensed he was talking too much about Jesse. Wanting to make Kurt understand, he pulled his hand back and placed his other hand on top of their intertwined fingers. "Please don't misunderstand me. I'm not trying to talk to you about how much I loved my ex-boyfriend. I'm trying to make you understand _how strongly _ I feel about you. I loved Jesse very much for a very long time. A part of me may always love Jesse because he was my first love. But the thing is, how I felt about Jesse, that immediate and surreal connection I felt with him, I felt the same thing with you and I felt it even stronger. And I don't want to scare you away and I don't want you to think I'm comparing you to my ex. I just _need _you to realize that this is real for me. I thought that how I felt about Jesse was something I'd never feel again and then I met you and I felt everything all over again and even harder. And I wanted you and I needed you and it's different with you. I don't feel closed off or cynical when I'm with you. I just feel like _me. _And I love the Warblers, I do. But as much as I don't wanna give them up, I don't wanna give you up either. And I know this sounds insane, me wanting and needing you when I don't even know you, but it's just this overwhelming feeling that I _cannot get rid of. _No matter how hard I try to convince myself not to feel this connection to you, it won't go away. And I don't _want _it to go away. So please, don't go away." The last words were a whisper and if it would have been any louder inside Kurt might have missed it.

"Blaine, I-" Kurt stared at Blaine, mouth agape, unsure what to say in response to all of that. In reality, he felt exactly the same. He knew what it was like to feel alone and closed off. He knew what it was like to push everyone away because he was afraid of being hurt, or of them being hurt at his expense. He hadn't been in a real relationship because of it. But he wanted all of that with Blaine. He had felt that same immediate connection to Blaine, something that was so strong it terrified him, and he didn't want to let it go. He didn't want to go. He didn't want to say goodbye. He wanted and needed Blaine, too. He couldn't explain it and he knew they both sounded insane because they didn't even _know _each other, but like Blaine said, he just couldn't shake it. But what could they do? They couldn't be together and still be in the Warblers and New Directions.

Blaine stared adoringly at Kurt, waiting for the other boy to finish whatever it was that he had started saying. "It's just, I understand what you're saying and how you're feeling. I feel the exact same way despite how insane it makes me sound. I felt this intense connection to you the night we met. That's why I did what I did in the bathroom. I never would have done that with anyone else. But you're not anyone else to me, Blaine. And I don't even_ know you_ and this is _crazy! _But its something I can't explain and I can't get away from and I've decided that I don't even _want _to get away from it. I want to want you, Blaine. I want to need you and I want to get to know every single thing about you. I want to kiss you and I want to do what we did in the bathroom, only not in the bathroom. I want all of that, more than anything I do. But I don't see how we can. We can't risk being together and you being kicked out of the Warblers. You said yourself that those guys are all you have and you can't lose them. And I don't want you to, not for me. I'm not worth it." Kurt lowered his head and stared at the hand that remained in his lap.

"Hey. Look at me." Kurt was surprised by Blaine's commanding tone and looked up and stared at him. The other boy smiled at him and he couldn't help but smile back. "Don't ever say you're not worth it. You are worth it to me, Kurt. And I'm not saying I want to give up the Warblers, or that I even intend to. But why do I _have _to? Why can't we just not say anything to anyone and leave it be? Then we can be together without having to worry about any repercussions from our friends and without having to worry about being kicked out of our groups."

"How would that even work? What, we'd be dirty little secrets to each other and that's it? A casual fuck on the side that we have to do without telling anyone else?" Kurt could hear the biting tone to his questions and he wasn't even sure why he'd become so defensive all of a sudden. Blaine's idea was the most rational. His idea allowed them to be together without worrying about any risks or backlash. But his idea also made everything a complete secret and Kurt was tired of secrets. Every 'relationship' he'd ever had (using the word relationship _very _lightly) had been a secret. He hadn't told his friends and he'd kept everything quiet in order to protect himself and the guy he was involved with. He didn't want Blaine to fall into that category. He didn't want Blaine to be a secret like the others had been. Blaine was _different. _He wanted what he had with Blaine to be different.

Blaine's entire face dropped in response to Kurt's anger. "I- We- Kurt, it is_ not_ like that. I don't want to just occasionally fuck you and call it a day. I want everything we just spoke about, but I know we can't have that unless we keep it quiet. Believe me, if there was an alternative, if we had any other way and could just be together publicly, I would do that. I would parade around with you on my arm during the day and then I would take you home and fuck you senseless all. night. long." Blaine said the last part in a seductive whisper that made Kurt's hair stand and sent blood flowing straight to his dick.

"I know, I know. I'm sorry. I'm just used to keeping all of my relationships a secret and I'm _tired _of it. I wanted things between us to be different. I didn't want to have to hide you away and not be able to tell my friends about the amazing, gorgeous guy I'm seeing. I wanted to be able to brag about you at sleepovers and gloat about how fantastic things are between us. I wanted to be able to be yours and I wanted people to _know it." _Kurt shrugged and shook his head. "But it's not important. I'd rather be with you in secret than not be with you at all."

"Really? You're sure?" Blaine asked, his eyes bright and hopeful.

"Yes, I'm sure," Kurt said, giggling with the lightest and most beautiful laugh Blaine had ever heard.

"Your laugh, your smile, you, it's all so _beautiful," _Blaine breathed.

Kurt blushed a furious shade of red and giggled once more. "Thank you, Blaine. You're not too bad yourself, you know. So… we're really doing this, then?" Kurt asked hesitantly.

"We're really doing this. We're going to be together and no one will ever be the wiser. It'll be between us and these four walls and I'm sure they'll be able to keep our secret," Blaine chuckled, squeezing Kurt's hand and putting the other boy at ease once more.

"Between us and the four walls. The walls will keep our secret. Got it," Kurt said, teasing Blaine and making it seem as though he was making a very important mental checklist. "Okay then, so what do you say we get out of here and _be together_" Kurt asked, flirting heavily, licking and then biting on his lower lip while batting his eyelashes innocently at Blaine.

"I say _absolutely_," Blaine responded excitedly. He could already feel himself getting hard in his jeans and hoped that wherever they went, it didn't take long to get there.


	8. Chapter 8

As it turns out the backseat of a car is actually a _lot _spacier than it seems from the outside. For this, Blaine is extremely thankful. If he would have had to wait one more minute to be with Kurt he would have lost his mind. They reservedly made their way out of the Lima Bean and to the car (Blaine was sure it was a miracle that they did) before attacking each other's mouths. Kurt had just reached the car when he turned to face Blaine, only to find Blaine's mouth immediately attached to his own. Blaine wasted no time in exploring, pushing Kurt roughly against the car and tonguing along his lips for access to his mouth. As their tongues fought viciously for dominance, their hands were everywhere. Blaine was enjoying the feel of Kurt's strong arms and took no time to work his way down and feel the round curves of his ass before squeezing and eliciting a small moan from the other boy. Luckily their mouths were firmly attached to each other, which made Kurt's small moan land right in Blaine's mouth. Blaine could feel the vibration of the sound and was even more turned on, instantly feeling a strong presence in his pants that was only slightly there a couple of minutes ago.

"Car. _Now," _Blaine practically growled to Kurt. Kurt was completely hard just from that _sound. Dear GOD._ He fidgeted for the keys in his shoulder bag while still completely enthralled in sucking every inch of Blaine that he could find. He moved from mouth to neck to jaw to earlobe. Blaine responded enthusiastically, moaning and whining and completely melting underneath his tongue. Kurt loved that he could make Blaine so vulnerable, loved making him feel so good. When he finally found the keys he unlocked the door and wasted no time in shoving Blaine in and joining him. Once the door was closed he laid himself right on top of the other boy's body, instantly feeling the growing erection in his pants. Feeling spontaneous and far more courageous than he actually was, he reached his hand down and began palming him through his jeans. The touch was seemingly electric to Blaine who's back immediately arched up to respond to the touch.

"Mmmm, _Kurt," _he moaned between keening and breathless panting. Kurt strained his neck up to reach Blaine's mouth, reattaching their lips and sucking vehemently.

"Thank god it's dark out. We're two gay teenage boys in an Ohio parking lot and I'm about to give you the best hand job of your entire life." Kurt punctuated the last three words with sloppy kisses and rubbed teasingly harder at Blaine's crotch as he did so. He knew the boy was putty underneath him and he was loving every second of it. The _noises _that were coming out of him were enough to make Kurt come instantly.

Within seconds Blaine's jeans were undone and pulled just low enough so that Kurt would be allowed access to his beautifully hard dick. "Mmm. You're so gorgeous like this. You're a wreck right now. I bet you're just loving this aren't you?" Kurt teased, watching as Blaine's eyes became even darker and blown out with lust with every word he spoke. "You're just loving me, here, on top of you, getting ready to touch you and make you moan and scream my name like never before. And when you come, you'll _sing _my name for me, won't you, gorgeous?" Kurt didn't even know where all of this sassy, flirty, teasing dominatrix foreplay was coming from, but it was making Blaine even crazier and he wasn't going to stop. There was something about being with Blaine that gave him a certain sexual power and he was ready to act fully on those instincts.

"Yes. Dear _god._ I'll sing you anything you want, beautiful. Anything you want." Blaine arched his back up to reach Kurt's mouth once more, slipping his tongue back inside and fighting for power, though he knew he was completely powerless to Kurt right then. He threaded his hands into Kurt's hair and pulled, crushing their lips as close together as they could possibly go. As he did, Kurt's hands found themselves elsewhere, shifting down Blaine's abdomen and straight to his dick, wrapping around and beginning to stroke. Blaine moaned low and deep in his throat as he disconnected his mouth from Kurt's and flung his head back. His mouth was open in a small circle, just enough so that he could continue panting and letting out moan after moan that was making Kurt insane. He started out tauntingly slow at first, and Blaine was practically fucking into his hand to get more friction. Kurt didn't want to give in but when Blaine begged "Please, Kurt, please. _Oh, _please." Kurt began to pick up speed and began tightening his grip as he twisted and pressed into the bulging veins and sensitive head of his dick.

"I'll take care of you, Blaine. I promise." Kurt knew that it sounded like he was making a promise to make Blaine come and take care of him by sexually satisfying him, but part of him felt a double meaning attached to it. He wanted to promise Blaine that he'd take care of him in every other way too. He wanted to make sure that Blaine knew he could be vulnerable and open and himself with Kurt without being afraid. He wanted to tell Blaine that whatever had happened to him in the past was in the past and that he wanted so much to be his future and to make him happy. He hoped that Blaine understood what he was saying, too.

"I-I know," Blaine choked out between moans, grabbing Kurt's face and staring deeply into his eyes. Kurt knew that Blaine had picked up on the double meaning and he felt so grateful. Blaine pulled his face down so that their mouths could meet once more, but this time, the kiss was less urgent and sloppy and more passionate and intense. The emotion behind the kiss went straight from his heart to his dick and he felt it throbbing in his jeans. He grinded down against Blaine's leg hoping to seek some friction.

Blaine immediately caught on and pulled back from the kiss. "You have way too much clothing on. You need me to let me take care of you now," he said in a raspy voice, reaching down and undoing Kurt's jeans and pulling down his pants and underwear in one strong, deft push. When Kurt's dick sprang free Blaine's hands wasted no time at all in wrapping around and beginning to stroke. Unlike Kurt he didn't start by teasing, especially since he was so close to coming he could barely stand it. He was gonna come soon at the rate Kurt was stroking him, and he wanted Kurt to come with him.

After a few minutes, both boys shifted their position so that they were sitting up and had their bodies as close as they could without losing the ability to keep jerking each other off. Their foreheads were pressed firmly together as their arms tangled between their bodies and stroked each other. They were moaning and panting in unison and they both knew that before long they would be spilling come all over each other.

"Come. Soon. Gonna come," Kurt stuttered out as he leaned in for another sloppy kiss.

Blaine returned the kiss eagerly, latching on and sucking wildly. After a few seconds he pulled back to moan out "M-me, me too. Me too. Soon." He reattached his lips firmly and thrusted his tongue back into Kurt's mouth.

In less than a minute's time Kurt broke the kiss, throwing his head back and screaming Blaine's name as his dick spilled white fluid all over Blaine's hand. Blaine continued stroking him through his orgasm as Kurt continued panting out Blaine's name in an almost _chant. _Blaine couldn't take much longer, and when Kurt looked over at Blaine with red, swollen lips, beads of sweat on his forehead, and eyes completely blown out in a way that only someone who had been completely _sated _could, he came instantly, spilling come along Kurt's fingers just as the other boy had seconds ago. Kurt returned the favor and continued to stroke Blaine through his orgasm. With his other hand, he reached down and collected the come from his hand and Blaine's dick, staring deliberately into Blaine's eyes as he sucked off the come and _moaned _around his fingers. Blaine had _serious _deja vu, remembering back to the night they'd met and the way that Kurt had done exactly the same thing.

"You really like doing that to me don't you?" Blaine asked breathlessly, coming down from his high and leaning back against the seat of the car.

"Doing what?" Kurt asked innocently, smiling and batting his long, beautiful lashes at Blaine after popping his now-clean fingers out of his mouth with a crude popping sound.

"Making me come and then making me feel like I have to _come all over again_ by sucking my come off of your fingers. It's the sexiest fucking thing I have ever seen and I cannot fucking handle it. If your intention is to drive me insane, you're plan is working wonderfully. If you didn't intend it but it's just happening that way anyway, please never stop. As much as it drives me crazy I fucking _love _it," Blaine said, closing his eyes and letting out another deep moan. "Fuck, Kurt. You are so fucking beautiful. So sexy."

Kurt could feel the blush spreading from his neck to his face. No one had ever called him beautiful before, let alone _sexy. _He stared deeply into Blaine's eyes before leaning over and reaching his hand to his cheek, caressing his thumb over it. Blaine stared back, smiling a small, innocent smile that was still absolutely beautiful to Kurt, and instantly leaned into Kurt's touch. After a few seconds of _being _in silence, Kurt leaned in further, capturing his lips in a gentle kiss that took Blaine's breath away. "No one has ever called me beautiful before. I just- I-" Kurt stammered looking for the right words. He looked away from Blaine and into his lap (where his now limp dick was still on display) before looking back up and reaching for Blaine's hand. After intertwining their fingers together Kurt squeezed Blaine's hand and smiled at him. "Thank you," he whispered, cheeks getting redder with every second because now _he _was the one who was completely vulnerable.

"You never have to thank me for telling the truth. You _are _beautiful, Kurt. And I will make sure to spend every day from now on making sure you know that." Blaine said it so matter-of-factly that it took Kurt's breath away. Not only was he insistent about Kurt knowing how beautiful he was, but he was _planning _for days to come, days that they would be spending together. Kurt yearned for those days more than anything else. Blaine was the best thing that had happened to Kurt in so long. He couldn't wait for 'every day from now on'. His heart pumped wildly in his chest as the adrenaline coursed through his veins. He felt absolutely _euphoric. _

"I think I like the sound of that," Kurt said, smiling brightly and letting out a small, melodic giggle. Blaine thought he could definitely get used to the beautiful sound of his laughter.

"Me too," Blaine affirmed, smiling with all teeth and crinkly eyes. "Me too."

* * *

Not wanting to say goodbye just yet, the two boys decided they'd go back to Blaine's to spend some more time together. Blaine's parents were going to be away for a couple of days on some vacation, that _obviously _didn't include him, with other members of the country club so the house would be free. Kurt followed Blaine in his own car and was grateful that they were separated because he couldn't help gaping at the humongous houses as they passed further away from Lima into Westerville and towards Blaine's house. He had heard that Westerville was completely different than Lima and he knew that the main reason for that was because Westerville was reserved for the significantly wealthy members of the population, but he'd never really thought much of it. Now that he was living it, however, he didn't think he would have been able to imagine the major difference even if he had tried. It was actually striking how different the two were. It was like being in a separate world and Kurt felt like he'd entered a surreal alternate universe. When they pulled into Blaine's driveway Kurt's mouth opened even wider as he took in the sight of Blaine's house before him. It was one of the biggest and most gorgeous houses on the block and Kurt was sure it had been featured as a castle in some fairytale movie. It _had _to have been.

Blaine appeared at Kurt's car window and tapped on it gently, chuckling lightly when he noticed Kurt's face. When Kurt stepped out of the car, Blaine reached for his hand and dragged him to the door. "I know it's a lot to take in. But trust me, it's really nothing more than a good show. There's absolutely nothing special about this place," Blaine said and Kurt could hear the bitter, hurt tone in his voice. He squeezed his hand gently as Blaine unlocked the door with his free hand and led them inside.

After removing coats and shoes, they made their way into the family room where the couches and TV were. "I'd give you a grand tour, but it's really too big and too boring and I don't want to waste my time with you showing off this stupid house. You'll see my bedroom another time, I'm sure," he added with a satisfied smirk on his face as he winked over at Kurt.

Kurt rolled his eyes teasingly and let out a small giggle. "Alright, Romeo, I think you can turn off the charm now. I mean, we've already hand fucked each other and I'm in your house. You've got me right where you want me. So what're we gonna do now?"

"Oh, I can think of _many _things that we can do right now," Blaine said, walking over to Kurt and wrapping his arms around his shoulders.

Kurt responded by placing his hands on Blaine's waist and pulling him closer so that their bodies were sealed together. He leaned in close enough to Blaine's mouth that Blaine could feel the warmth of his breathing. Just as Blaine was closing his eyes and leaning in for a kiss he whispered "I bet you could" and turned his face to kiss Blaine's cheek, pulling away quickly to go and sit on the couch.

"You little _tease_," Blaine said, following after him and sitting beside him on the couch. "So what would you rather do than what I suggested? I'd love to know what you think is a more satisfying alternative. Although I'm _positive _that whatever it might be I am _more than capable _of being far more satisfying to you," Blaine said suggestively, placing his hand on Kurt's knee and working his way up to his inner thigh before rubbing soothing circles over his jeans.

Kurt slapped his hand away playfully. "I concur with your capabilities, but I just want to betogether right now. Yaknow, spend some time together without making each other come? Just relaxing and _being _and nothing else. Maybe we could watch a movie or something. I'll probably have to go home soon and I just want to spend the rest of the night enjoying your company without being a typical hormone-filled teenager who can't keep his pants on. Do you think we could do that? Just sit together for a while?" Kurt started off feeling bold and sarcastic but eventually wound up feeling nervous. He knew that Blaine wanted more than just sex from him, but there was always a nagging feeling that maybe that wasn't entirely true. When the only relationships you've ever had are secretive sexual encounters based on pure sex and nothing else, it's hard to not think that way.

"Yeah," Blaine said happily, "I think we can do that. What movie do you want to watch?" Blaine asked after leaning in for one more quick kiss.

"Surprise me," Kurt responded in a playful whisper.

"Okay, well, you asked for it then. I just happen to _love _movies. Close your eyes!"

"Close my eyes?" Kurt questioned, a single eyebrow raised suspiciously.

"Well you _said _to surprise you. So I'm only following orders!" Blaine said and Kurt swore he was dealing with a five-year-old. "Now close your eyes and don't open them until I tell you to! No peeking either!" Blaine was practically squealing with excitement and Kurt couldn't help but want to wrap him in his arms and squeeze him like a little puppy. He was so adorable that it was almost too much to deal with.

"Fine, fine. Surprise away."

Within a couple of minutes of fumbling with buttons and menu options, the movie was on. Kurt could hear it before he saw it and he felt his heart leap into his throat. He had watched the movie dozens of times before and knew well enough what it was just by the opening music. Blaine could not have picked a better movie if he had told him exactly what movie to put on himself. "Okay, you can open your eyes now!" Blaine said, turning around to see Kurt already beaming with his eyes still closed. When Kurt opened his eyes Blaine was staring back at him with a severely disappointed look on his face. "How come you were smiling even before you opened your eyes? Did you peek? You ruined the surprise."

Kurt couldn't bear the sad look on Blaine's face and rushed to reassure him. "I didn't peek I swear! I could tell by the opening music what movie it was because it's one of my absolute favorite movies in the whole world. And I am so happy you picked this movie for us to watch."

"Moulin Rouge is one of your favorite movies? Seriously?" Blaine asked, genuinely surprised. "I thought I was the only person in this world that loved this movie. None of my friends like it all that much. I mean, they don't dislike it, but they don't love it like I do. I can't get enough of it. The setting, the music, the love story. Everything about it is just so amazing. Come to think of it," Blaine said, pausing for a second to finish his thought, eyebrows furrowed together in concentration, "You and I are a lot like Satine and Christian. They wanted each other and fell for each other but they had to be together in secret because of the Duke. But they're together in the end, so I guess it doesn't actually matter whether it was secret or not, now does it?" Blaine asked sweetly, leaning in and kissing Kurt's cheek gently.

"I guess not," Kurt said bashfully, thinking that there had probably never been a more perfect evening than this one.

As the two boys settled together on the couch, cuddling close with a blanket draped over them, the movie began. Kurt was wrapped in Blaine's arms smiling peacefully to himself as the familiar words echoed through the room. _The greatest thing you'll ever learn is just to love and be loved in return. _


	9. Chapter 9

A/N: The song playing on Blaine's alarm clock is "Songbird" by Fleetwood Mac. I own nothing! Enjoy, my friends! =)

* * *

"Blaineykins, this is your cousin, Santana. I'm not sure you remember who I am considering you haven't answered any of my calls in the past three days. Your little gay ass better have a good excuse for ignoring me. Maybe your brain finally went to mush from all of that hair gel you use. Or maybe grandpa called and asked for his wardrobe back so now you're wandering around completely naked and have bigger problems than answering my calls. Who knows. Point is, I've been waiting to hear from you and you best be calling me back soon. Love you, BlaineBlaine." Santana ended the call with a kissy noise and hung up.

"Where the hell is that little McNugget?" Santana found herself asking aloud. Blaine wasn't usually the type of person to ignore phone calls from anyone, especially not Santana. Either something was very wrong, or something was very right. She hoped, for his sake, that it was the latter. Blaine would do well to find himself in good company and maybe even find a new boytoy to play with. God knows it's been long enough since he was happy. That Jesse kid really fucked him up big time and she hated him for it. She had offered more than once to "go all Lima Heights on his curly-haired, snaggletoothed, fake-Prince-Charming ass", but Blaine had never obliged her request. She and Puck had many a conversation about the damage that he'd done to Blaine and the payback he deserved. They'd plotted and schemed against Jesse for a while before they eventually let it go. He was graduating and leaving for good and hopefully then he'd stay away from Blaine and let him be happy with someone else. As long as he was around they knew that wouldn't happen. Blaine was the type of person who got stuck on things that he really loved and didn't know how to let go. The only way he'd really be able to move on is with Jesse completely removed from his life. Santana and Puck were more than thankful that Jesse went back to where he came from once he graduated. They were also pretty sure he hadn't contacted Blaine since, which was definitely improvement and was hopefully allowing Blaine to move forward.

When Blaine still hadn't called back several hours later, Santana wondered if maybe she should go over to the house and see if he was okay. She thought about it for a while before deciding against it. The last thing she wanted to do was show up at her aunt and uncle's house asking if Blaine was around and okay. They'd started asking questions and there was no way anything good could come out of that. She knew how they felt about Blaine being gay, and she knew damn good and well how shitty they treated him because of it. She had never really liked her Aunt Susan because she could tell from a young age that she thought she was much better than her sister, Santana's mother, and Santana hated her for it. Despite being an only child, she could never understand how someone could be so condescending and pretentious to her own sister. Uncle Will seemed okay at first, he tried hard to get on Santana's good side, but Santana could always tell it was forced and once she heard how he'd responded to Blaine, she thought he was an even bigger asshole than before. Needles to say, Santana was less than fond of the two, putting it lightly. They were phony, greedy, upperclass morons who thought the most important things in life were money and status. They were the complete opposite of her and her mother and they'd abandoned their own son for fear of losing either of the two things. If she'd thought they were brainless idiots before, their disregard and neglect towards Blaine since he came out solidified her conclusions. There was nothing she wanted more than to get Blaine out of that house for good, especially now that Cooper was gone. At least with Cooper around she knew that Blaine stood a chance at being okay because he was like Blaine's bodyguard. When Blaine came out, Cooper was super supportive and made sure that he always defended Blaine to their parents, to anyone really. Santana had always thought Cooper was a pompous jackass, but when he did right by Blaine and tried to keep him safe her attitude towards him changed. She respected him and she decided maybe she'd like him after all. But then Coop left, and she couldn't blame him. She knew more than anyone what it felt like to want out of this town; to chase her dreams and find her own success and happiness somewhere where people would respect her talent and admire her for it. One day she'd buy a one way ticket out of this place and she'd never look back. She couldn't be angry or upset with Cooper for doing exactly that, but it didn't make her feel any better about the situation Blaine would be stuck in. She hated that he was alone in that house with nowhere to escape to and forced to deal with his ignorant parents' bullshit all the time. It wasn't fair to him. He was one of the best people Santana had ever known and if she, of all people, was saying that, it meant something.

Whatever was going on, Santana didn't need to know details (of course she _wanted _to know, but if Blaine decided not to talk about whatever was happening she'd understand), she just hoped that he was okay. Before she headed off to Cheerios practice for the afternoon she decided she'd give him one last call.

"Me again! Keep ignoring me, smallfry, it's fine. Just checking in to make sure you're alive. You can give me a call back whenever you want me to exist again. I'm only your favorite cousin after all, what do I matter? Anyway! I gotta go to practice now so I won't be able to answer you for a while, not that you'll answer me anyway, but if you do decide to call me back and I don't answer that's why. Hope you're busy with something good. It _best _be something good. If not, you always know that I can go all Lima Heights on anyone that you need me to. Just give a call whenever! Okay Blainedays. Hopefully we'll speak soon… or not." Santana ended the call and shoved her phone in her tote bag for practice.

"What _is _that boy up to?"

* * *

Blaine felt badly for ignoring Santana, aside from Puck she was his best friend now that Cooper was gone, but he couldn't answer her just yet. Blaine's biggest problem was that he always told Puck and Santana everything. Now, when he finally had something good, no, _amazing _to share, he couldn't tell them. It was one thing keeping it all from Puck because he was with Blaine at Dalton and would have no chance of ever coming into contact with Kurt. But Santana was a _big_ problem because Santana also went to McKinley. If Blaine accidentally let it slip that he was seeing someone, she'd never rest until she figured out who it was. And once she uncovered the truth and exploded their little secret they'd be done for. He didn't think Santana would ever do anything to hurt him, but he didn't want to take even the smallest of chances where Kurt was concerned. Until he could be sure that he had everything under control he had to make sure he avoided talking for extended periods of time to both Puck and Tana. It sucked having to keep things a secret, but whenever Blaine even _thought _of Kurt he realized it didn't even matter.

It had been three weeks since their rendezvous in the car that evening, not that Blaine was _counting_ or anything, and Blaine could not recall a time in years where he'd been even a fraction as happy as he had during that time. January had flown into February and soon enough it would be Valentine's Day. Blaine wasn't much of a romantic, usually, but Kurt brought out all of the things in Blaine that he'd never known existed and something made him _want _to be a romantic _for _Kurt. Kurt deserved all of the best things and Blaine would do anything to make sure that he got them. Of course, it was slightly difficult considering he and Kurt had to be kept secret. Their options for going out to do things were severely limited, but Blaine was vehement about making sure that it didn't stop them from celebrating a wonderful, romantic night together. He had so many things swirling through his head, so many things he wanted to do with Kurt to celebrate the holiday, so many things to do to make sure everything went off without a hitch.

First he wanted to take Kurt out for dinner. He had done some research and had found a nice, quiet, romantic little restaurant in Columbus that would most definitely do the trick, and was also nowhere near Dalton or McKinley so that would lessen their chances of being seen together. After dinner he wanted to take Kurt to a ballet. He knew it sounded cheesy and typical, but ballets were sweet and beautiful and often told the most wonderful love stories that Blaine felt would be perfect for a Valentine's evening together. Columbus had a theatre that often did really amazing shows, Blaine had been to one just a few months ago and was completely mesmerized by it. He had looked into their production company and found that, while no ballet was being shown that evening, it would be the second performance of Wicked that the local community theatre would be putting on in their playhouse. Blaine had been disappointed that his plans for the ballet would fall through, but knowing that Kurt's favorite musical was Wicked he knew it would be even more perfect than his original plan. After Wicked Blaine had plans to take Kurt back to his house for the evening. Regardless of whether or not his parents were home they usually ignored his presence, so being alone with Kurt wouldn't be a problem. He wasn't necessarily _planning _for anything to happen that night, but if it did he would surely welcome it.

He initially wanted the entire evening to be a complete surprise, but since Blaine wanted Kurt to spend the night at his house he knew he'd have to let him know ahead of time so that he could pack a bag with whatever he'd need. He finally settled on asking Kurt to spend the evening, but not telling him what exactly they'd be doing.

"Do you trust me?" Blaine had asked Kurt over coffee at the Lima Bean the night before. He had told Kurt that he wanted him to spend the night at his house, but he had also told him that he had other plans for the evening that he wanted to remain a surprise. Kurt was skeptical. He had stared at Blaine long and hard for a while before answering, and Blaine had felt a strong sense of anxiety creep up on him when he realized that maybe Kurt _didn't _trust him.

"Of _course _I trust you, Blaine. I just hate surprises is all. I hate having to wait. I wanna know now!" he responded sincerely, sounding somewhat like a toddler demanding to know what his Christmas presents would be. This elicited a chuckle from Blaine.

"I know, I know. But be patient, it'll be here before you know it and it will be so worth it. So is that a yes, then?" Blaine asked hopefully, batting his adorably long eyelashes at Kurt and staring at him with melty puppy dog eyes.

"It is most definitely a yes. I would not want to do anything else or spend my night with anyone else but you, Mr. Anderson," Kurt said, returning the loving gaze and leaning over to kiss Blaine quickly. Blaine hummed slightly at the contact and when Kurt pulled away he was positively beaming. "I will be ready by 5:30, just as requested, and I will have my bags packed to spend the night at your place. I can't wait!" Kurt squealed excitedly, clapping his hands together and bouncing up and down in his seat.

"Neither can I," Blaine responded, still beaming over at Kurt across the table.

* * *

_For you, there'll be no more crying _

_For you, the sun will be shining_

_And I feel that when I'm with you _

_It's alright, I know it's right. _

_To you, I'll give the world _

_To you, I'll never be cold _

_Cause I feel that when I'm with you _

_It's alright, I know it's right. _

Blaine's alarm clock went off and he was about to reach over and hit the snooze button before he heard the song. He stretched and rubbed his eyes, allowing the song to play through. When he sat up in bed he realized what day it was. February 14th: Valentine's Day. Tonight would be his special night with Kurt and he was so excited that he immediately jolted wide awake. Their night was going to be amazing. Nothing and no one could get him down today. Listening to the birds chirping outside and the song playing behind him he smiled brightly and began singing along.

_And the songbirds are singing _

_Like they know the score_

_And I love you, I love you, I love you_

_Like never before _

He and Kurt had only been dating for a little over a month, but Blaine felt like it had been years. He was the happiest he'd ever been, even happier than when he was with Jesse. He would be perfectly content if he could spend every day and every night with Kurt for the rest of forever. On February fifth he and Kurt had celebrated their one month anniversary. They had decided their anniversary would be the night they officially first met as opposed to the night they decided to be a couple. Since they first met on January fifth, that meant the fifth would be their anniversary date. The night had been calm and relaxed and absolutely lovely. It was also rather, _pleasurable, _if Blaine did say so himself. He was sure Kurt would say the same. He giggled to himself at the thought as he went to his closet and picked out his outfit for the evening. He had told Kurt to be dressy but comfortable so he figured he'd do the same. He always dressed that way, though, so he didn't have much trouble picking out an outfit that fit that description. He settled for a pair of fitted black dress pants, a black t-shirt, and a peppered sweater that was both fashionable and extremely warm and cozy. After he laid out his clothes on the bed and added a pair of black dress shoes to go with it he went to take a shower.

When he got back to his room, drying his still damp curls with a towel, he absentmindedly picked up his phone to check and see if he'd missed anything. He had another call from Santana, which he knew would be yet _another _voicemail wondering where he was and lecturing him about the importance of calling people back. He knew he'd have to give in and call her back soon, maybe by tomorrow or at most within the next couple of days. He was worried that if he didn't call her back soon she'd take more drastic action than leaving incessant voicemails. He shuddered at the thought.

He also had a missed text message from Kurt: **Good morning, beautiful boy. Happy Valentine's day! I am so indescribably excited for tonight, despite having no idea what we're even doing. I just woke up, so I'm going to jump in the shower and then get ready and pack all my things. I promise I'll be ready in time. I can't wait to see you. :) **

His stomach gave an absurd swooping feeling and he couldn't help the stupid smile that spread wide across his face, crinkling his eyes almost closed.

**I can't wait to see you either, gorgeous. It is going to be an unforgettable evening and I can't wait to spend it with you. :) **Blaine replied, hitting the send button and throwing his phone back down on the bed.

After throwing his towel into the hamper and putting on a pair of tight-fitting black boxer-briefs, he heard his phone ring again and walked over to his bed to see what Kurt had responded. But Blaine had only just picked up the phone when he threw it back down on the bed as though it had burned him. He stared down at the lit-up screen in disbelief as his heart pounded uncomfortably in his chest. The smile that had seconds ago lit up his face disappeared completely and was replaced with furrowed eyebrows and a horribly sad frown. His eyes were so wide that it was becoming uncomfortable and he had to close them. The phone continued ringing as Blaine roughly ran his hands up and down his face, shaking his head back and forth in disbelief.

When the phone stopped ringing Blaine finally opened his eyes, looking back down at his phone on the bed in complete shock. He felt like he had seen a ghost. He picked up the phone and stared at the lock screen that alerted him to the fact that he had a missed call and a voicemail. The name above the alert is what Blaine stared at fixedly, unable to look away but also unable to have any response whatsoever. When he finally looked away from the screen, he could see the alert before his eyes as clear as if he was still staring at it.

**1 Missed Call 1 Voicemail **

**Jesse St. James **


	10. Chapter 10

A/N: Thank you all for the support and feedback I've been getting. I'm so glad a bunch of you are enjoying this little story. This chapter made me really sad to write. It might not translate the same way when reading, but if it does I'm so sorry! It needed to be done so that we can move on. Read on!

* * *

Blaine sunk down onto the edge of the bed and hung his head in his hands. _This wasn't supposed to happen. Especially not today. Today was supposed to be about me and Kurt and everything was supposed to be so wonderful. Why did he have to call now? _Blaine picked up his phone and slid the lock button to stare at the screen again. _Why did you have to call me today, Jesse? _

Deciding that waiting around for a good time to listen to the voicemail would do more harm than good, he pressed the voicemail play button and listened to the message. He hoped it would be better to dive right in, rip the bandaid off in one quick movement before it could wind up hurting even more. He knew as soon as he heard Jesse's voice that it didn't actually matter how long he'd waited, it would hurt just as much regardless of time. That bandaid was stuck on there and had been for quite some time. Ripping it off was never easy.

Jesse's voice was soft, quiet, almost whispering and it made Blaine's stomach and heart jolt painfully. "Ah, shit, voicemail," then a pause. Blaine thought he'd hung up and that would be the end of the message but when he pulled back his phone from his ear to look at the screen it said the message still had 32 seconds. There was more. Of course, with Jesse there is always more. Blaine pressed the phone back to his ear waiting for Jesse to start talking again. The pause lasted for almost 10 seconds of the message, then "I just- well, today is- but I'm sure you know- fuck I am just _rambling_ aren't I?" He let out an uncomfortable giggle that made a lump immediately form in Blaine's throat. "Sorry, lemme start this over. Hey, Blaine. It's- it's me, Jesse. I just wanted to give you a call to let you know that I'm thinking about you. I think about you all the time, really, but today especially. I know you probably hate me for calling, but I just had to. I picked up the phone at least 50 times over the past couple of days and today I finally pressed the button with your name on it. I'm sorry. I just- I wanted to hear your voice. I'm sorry. Happy Valentines Day, baby."

Blaine felt the tears on his cheeks before he realized he'd actually been crying. Before he knew what he was doing, he was pressing the button with Jesse's name on it and the phone was ringing.

"_Blaine_," Jesse breathed into the phone less than one ring later. His voice sounded so relieved that Blaine's breath caught in his throat. He must have been waiting and hoping that Blaine would call him back. Jesse knew him so well that he probably knew Blaine would call back eventually. He probably hadn't assumed it would be _that _soon, but still.

"How _dare you?"_ Blaine spat at him, holding back none of the anger, bitterness and resentment that was piling up with every tear that ran down his face and every spasm of pain that coursed through his stomach and heart. "Who do you think you are, Jesse? Huh?! You dump me with no good reason, completely shattering me into pieces and never looking back to see whether or not I had survived and put the pieces back together. Then I finally move on with my life _after _you had already moved on with yours, and _whatta ya know! _You're back and better than ever, _completely, _and singlehandedly, I may add, fucking up my relationship with Sebastian. I crushed him almost as badly as you crushed me. And for what?! Because you can't leave well enough alone! _YOU dumped ME, _Jess. _Not_ the other way around. I was perfectly happy, no I was _more_ than fucking happy, and _you _were the one who _ruined me_."

"Blaine- I" Jesse stuttered out while Blaine took a deep breath preparing for round two. He had more to say, much more.

"No, Jess, I'm not finished yet. You've had more than enough chances to screw everything up for me. And now you're gonna just fucking sit there and listen to what I have to say."

Jesse had never heard Blaine so angry. He sat motionless on the other end of the line waiting for Blaine to deal the next fatal blow. He knew it was coming. He didn't know what it was, but it was coming. Blaine sounded stronger and more confident than he would have ever imagined. Blaine never liked fighting, he always hated confrontation in every form. Throughout the duration of their relationship they barely ever fought. Sure, they had disagreements like other couples, but they never shouted at each other or said horrible things to each other. Blaine didn't understand the point of fighting and made sure he never surrounded himself with people who did. Jesse always knew the biggest reason for Blaine being so neutral, for never being confrontational, was because he'd had enough fighting at home to last him several lifetimes. He hated how much it had hurt Blaine, all the screaming and putting each other down, and made sure to never provoke an argument if he could help it.

When Blaine spoke again Jesse was surprised by the quiet sound to his voice. He wasn't yelling or cursing anymore, it was _his _Blaine again.

"You can't keep doing this to me, Jesse. You've been graduated for almost a year. We've been broken up even longer than that. You can't keep coming around and calling me and doing whatever it is you think that you're doing. You just _can't. _Sebastian was one thing, you were still here at Dalton and in Ohio and you thought maybe there could have been a chance for us. But you're not here anymore, Jess. You're gone. You've _been _gone and you're not coming back anytime soon. Are you?" Blaine hated the almost hopeful tone to his voice when he asked this. He didn't want Jesse back. He wanted to move on. He _needed _to move on. He was done doing this.

He'd meant it rhetorically, but Jesse had answered. "Well, no. Not unless you want me to. Not unless you give me a reason to."

Blaine blinked and felt his mouth fall open slightly. He shook his head back and forth. _This cannot seriously be happening. _

"I- I don't want you to, Jesse. I can't give you any reasons to come back here. Not for me, anyway. It's over, Jess. You're there and I'm here and… I met someone. His name is Kurt and he's hands down the most wonderful, _beautiful, _thoughtful and caring person I have ever met in my life. He _cares about me, _Jesse." Blaine cleared his throat and ignored the sound of sniffling from the other end of the line. He didn't want to hurt Jesse, but he couldn't take hurting anymore. Jesse needed to understand that they were over and that he needed to leave Blaine be.

"When I met you, I felt this immediate sense of home. There was a certain warmth and love associated with you that I could never place with anyone or anywhere or anything else. You were it for me, Jess. I allowed myself to open up to you, to be vulnerable and bare my heart and give you everything because I loved you so much that I couldn't even stand it. There were times when I would look at you and think that I never wanted to look at anyone else for the rest of my life. There were times when we were together that I felt in every inch of my body, under my skin, in my blood, in my bones, that you and I were meant to be together forever and that there was no way I would ever love anyone the way that I loved you. You were the most important person to me and you filled every last empty piece inside of me. You fixed me. My parents broke me and left me alone and you put me back together and made sure that I'd never be lonely. It was easy with you and I knew it was the most real thing that I had ever experience in my whole life. When we broke up I thought I'd never find that again. I thought I'd love you forever and never be able to get over that. I thought I'd die alone because I couldn't be with you.

"With Sebastian it wasn't anything like that and even though I wanted to make it work I knew, deep down, that it wouldn't. And when you came back around, even though I hated doing that to him, it wasn't too difficult to end things with him. I didn't have with him even a fraction of what I had with you.

"But then I met Kurt, Jess. And he's, well, he's everything that you were for me and _more. _I'm even more broken now than I was when I met you because now I have all of the scars that you left behind as well as the ones from my parents. And he's slowly sewing together all my cuts, soothing all my bruises and cleaning all the garbage to make sure that all the bad gets moved out. Everything that I felt with you, that immediate sense of love and safety and home, I felt with him instantly but even stronger. It was like all of my life half of me was missing, wandering around aimlessly and looking for the other piece, and when I found him the two pieces clicked together and everything was okay. _I was okay. _With him I can just _be. _I don't have to worry about my parents hating me, or my brother being gone, or you leaving me behind. I don't have to be afraid of the things that are going to happen in the future and I don't have to dwell on the unhappiness of the past. I can just look into his beautiful blue eyes and I can feel trapped in that moment without another single care in the world. I haven't had that feeling in so long that it terrified me at first. I almost completely pushed him away in a moment of temporary insanity. Thank god I had Puck to set me straight.

"The point is, I've finally moved past you, Jesse. It's taken me _so long, _but I've gotten here. I'd be lying if I said there aren't still times when it's hard for me. There used to be times when I missed you so much that I simply _ached _with missing you. My skin and my hair and my heart all shrunk in pain because they wanted to feel you and see you and have you again. It's not like that anymore. Now there will be times when I hear a song or see a movie or hear a quote or something else that will remind me of you and I'll feel a pull on my heart and a lump in my throat. There are times when good things happen and my hand immediately and unconsciously reaches for the phone so that I can call you and tell you what's happened. And when I remember that I can't call you, it hurts me. The other day I was in the shower and I heard the song you recorded for me and my whole body stood paralyzed and then my heart just _hurt_ because of it. And this morning, when I saw your name on my phone, when I saw that you were calling me, I thought my heart was going to explode because it hurt so badly.

"But I just think that will always be. There will always be a part of me, a part that is getting smaller everyday, that misses you. You were the first love of my life, Jess, and you were my best friend, and you were everything that I needed in another person exactly when I needed it most. You saved me. And no matter how much time passes or how many other guys I'm with, I think I will always love you and miss you because there was so much to us. We ran deeper than the occasional conversation between boyfriends or sex on fancy occasions. We were the best parts of each other and we made each other better just by being together. You made me better, Jesse, _so much better. _And I literally couldn't thank you enough for that even I spent the rest of my life trying. I needed something, someone, to make me know I was worth something, and you not only proved it, you made me believe it. But that was then. This is now. And now I'm with Kurt. Now I'm _happy again. _And now you need to allow yourself to move on and do that too. Not just for yourself, but for me too. You can't keep doing this. _We _can't keep doing this. It's been over for a long time, Jesse. It's time you and I both acknowledged that and said goodbye."

There was a long silence after Blaine finished speaking. Jesse hadn't made so much as a peep on the other end of the line for the entirety of Blaine's monologue.

"I know I apologized when we broke up, and after when I came back to you while you were with Sebastian. I know I tried to make things better, but you can never understand how deeply and profoundly sorry I am, Blaine. For everything," Jesse said in a voice so broken that Blaine could feel the tightness in his throat becoming so constricted he may not breathe. "I have never loved anyone the way that I loved you, Blaine. And I'm not sure that I ever will again. Every relationship that I've had since you has never even come close to you. I know I've told you this before, but no one will _ever be you, _Blaine.

"This Kurt, he- he sounds pretty amazing. It makes me happy to know that you're happy, even if I'm not the person responsible for making you feel that way. I _want _you to be happy, Blaine. More than anything in this whole world you deserve happiness. You have been through so many horrible things in your life that it's time for you to start enjoying it and understanding that there is good out there too. So much good that your parents will even seem insignificant. And all of that good, even though there is so much of it, an endless amount of it, will never be enough for you. You deserve all of it and more. And it sounds like this Kurt is a big chunk of that good, so I want that for you.

"I'm sorry I kept coming around and screwing up your life and I'm sorry I made things difficult for you and kept hurting you over and over again. I could sit here and apologize to you all day for so many different things, but I won't. I'd rather spend my time telling you how much I miss you. You know that ache you said you felt at first? How it was physically painful how much you missed me? I feel that ache everyday. It hasn't lessened and it hasn't manifested into something else. It's just a giant hole inside of me that aches consistently because I am empty without you. Maybe it's because I haven't found my own Kurt yet, maybe it's because I never will, but the love and the ache of missing you that I feel never wavers. I think it's because I know that I'm the reason why I don't have you. I let you go. I watched as the best thing I ever had in my life left. I pretty much forced you out. All of my heartache, all of my pain, everything that I have to deal with because I'm without you, that's all my own fault. And you're right. I can't keep doing this to you. I can't keep coming back around and hurting you because I'm hurting- because I fucked myself over by losing you. It's not at all fair to you and I'm _so sorry_, Blaine.

"I wish so badly that you and I could be friends again, could be for each other what we used to. But I know that can't be. It would be too hard on both of us and completely unfair. It wouldn't work. But if you know nothing else from me, know this: there will never be another person like you for me. I may try and find someone else to love, and I might even find him, but he will never be what you were, Blaine. He and I will never be what we were. But I hope that you and Kurt are everything that we were and more. Be happy, Blaine. I want that with all of my heart."

At this point both boys were silently sobbing; both acutely aware of the fact that the other was probably doing the same but taking caution not to even so much as sniffle so that the other couldn't be certain. It took over a minute for them to regain composure and say what needed saying. Blaine wanted this, he wanted Kurt and he was sure of it. So why was it all so hard?

"Thanks, Jess. I want that all for you, too. Please, _please _be happy. Pinky swear," Blaine said, smiling a watery smile through his tears and letting out a silent sob as he held the phone away from his face.

Pinky swearing was something he and Jesse always used to do. The first time Blaine had ever asked Jesse to pinky swear Jesse had looked at him as though he was insane and asked "What are you like five years old?" Blaine had frowned and looked down, embarrassed, but Jesse had lifted his chin with his fingers so that Blaine would look him in the eyes again. He was beaming at Blaine and leaned in to kiss him- a soft, sweet kiss. He then extended his pinky finger towards Blaine who hooked his own pinky around it with the biggest of smiles. From then on, they pinky swore about even the most pointless things just because it was their little thing.

Jesse didn't try to suppress his sob the same way that Blaine had and Blaine's heart shattered a little bit when he heard how painful it sounded. "I pinky swear," Jesse said in the bravest voice he could muster through his sobs.

There was another pause, neither wanting to be the one to have to say it first.

Swallowing around the tennis-ball sized lump in his throat, Blaine breathed in deep, closing his eyes. "Goodbye, Jesse."

"Goodbye, Blaine. I love you _so much_. Please always know that."

"I always will. And I love you too."

Before Blaine could say goodbye once more he heard a click in his ear that told him Jesse had hung up. He placed his phone on his bedside table, laid down, and allowed himself to let almost three years of love, memories and pain flow as freely into his pillows as the tears that flowed down his face.

* * *

At four o'clock Blaine forced himself out of bed to go and wash his face and get ready for his date. He'd told Kurt to be ready by 5:30 and he wouldn't be late this time. Despite everything that had happened this morning with Jesse, tonight was their night and everything was going to be perfect. He had meant everything he said to Jesse about Kurt. He was finally done and ready to move on.

Before getting dressed, he grabbed his phone and shot a quick text to Kurt: **Hey you ;) I'm getting dressed now and then leaving soon after. Be ready for me! **

Almost instantly Kurt responded with a text that made Blaine smile from ear to ear: **I am always ready for you. I really can't wait to see you, Blaine. Tonight is going to be everything. **

Blaine felt the familiar swoop in his stomach and hurried to get dressed. He couldn't wait to see Kurt. He wanted to wrap him in his arms and kiss him stupid and make sure that tonight was the best night that he'd ever had before. He wanted tonight to be a night they both remembered forever. He was going to make sure of it.

After he finished getting dressed he made sure to grab the tickets for the theatre and tuck them safely inside his coat pocket right next to his wallet. He called the restaurant to make sure that their reservation was still all set and felt even lighter when they said that everything was good to go. He made a mental checklist in his head as he went along, making sure that everything was good and ready. _Reservations: check. Tickets to the theatre: check. Picking up Kurt at 5:30: check. Kurt has a bag packed for after: check. _It seemed like everything was in place and that the night was going to be just as fantastic as he'd been imagining. He gave himself the once over and when he was completely satisfied he put on his coat (checking once more that his wallet and tickets were safe and accounted for), grabbed his keys and phone and left the house.

By 5:24 he was parked outside of Kurt's house. He called him to let him know he was there (they had decided to avoid any family introductions, especially in case Finn was around for the evening) and by 5:27 Kurt was in the car.

"Hi," he breathed, shuffling inside and shutting the door behind him. He looked over at Blaine with the brightest smile on his face. He was positively _glowing. _His eyes were beaming too. The setting sun caught his gorgeous seas of blue in just the right spots that took Blaine's breath away.

"Hi," Blaine breathed back. He leaned over the center console and placed his lips gently against Kurt's. Kurt's hand moved up to press against Blaine's cheek as his lips pressed harder against the other boys'. "You look absolutely _beautiful, _Kurt. I am so happy that we're going to be together tonight."

Kurt blushed a deep shade of pink when Blaine called him beautiful, still unable to recover whenever Blaine went out of his way to compliment him like that. "You look dashingly handsome, as always," he giggled before getting more serious, grabbing Blaine's hand and staring into his eyes. "I can't tell you how happy I am to be with you. Happy First Valentine's Day Together, boyfriend." He said, smiling bashfully and blinking up at Blaine through his long lashes with his melty heart eyes.

Blaine's smile matched Kurt's. "_Boyfriend. _I think I really _love _the sound of that. Happy Valentine's day, baby." Blaine leaned in to kiss him, then, another quick light kiss that had become routine to them by now. Blaine loved everything about it. The easiness of it made him feel like they'd be exchanging quick kisses like that for the rest of their lives. In the morning before they left for work. At night before they went to bed. When one said something that the other found endearing. When their kids did something cute and made them proud. While they were doing dishes after dinner. As they slipped in and out of the shower. _So many_ different times where it would simply be a part of their routine- something they'd always do because it was second nature to them.

"Shall we be off then?" Blaine asked, turning in his seat and starting the car up again. He smiled over at Kurt and then turned on the radio. "At Last" by Etta James was just coming to an end and Blaine took the opportunity to look over at Kurt and sing before he pulled out of the driveway. _"For you are mine, at last."_


	11. Chapter 11

Blaine had been watching Kurt out of the corner of his eye throughout the entire show. He knew Wicked was Kurt's favorite show and he was more interested in seeing his excited reactions than watching the actual performance. He'd seen the show once before and it was nothing compared to watching Kurt. He was like a little kid on Christmas morning and Blaine was sure he'd never seen anything more precious in all of his life. Not only did he mouth all of the words to most of the songs (which made Blaine want to do nothing more than reach over and squeeze him) but the incredible, toothy smile that Blaine loved so much never left his face. At one point, at the end of the first act, right after Elphaba had finished "Defying Gravity", the curtains closed, the lights came up and Kurt turned to look at Blaine with a pure look of adoration of his face.

"I've never seen anything more amazing in my life!" He squealed, practically bouncing in his seat with excitement.

"Neither have I," Blaine replied, though he was definitely not talking about Wicked.

At the end of the show, when Glinda and Elphaba were saying their goodbyes and "For Good" started, Blaine could see Kurt crying. He didn't want to disrupt him by trying to console him and putting his arm around him or wiping his tears away, but he was pleasantly surprised when Kurt leaned over and rested his head on his shoulder. He smiled and placed his head on top of his boyfriend's, finding his hand and intertwining their fingers. It was a moment Blaine knew he'd never forget. Valentine's Day with his wonderful boyfriend, watching an amazing show and being together without holding back. There was no way he'd ever be able to hear the song without thinking of that very moment with Kurt. As the song drew to a close, Kurt still mouthing along to every word, Blaine got the most wonderful surprise ever. Kurt turned his head slightly so that his mouth was close to Blaine's ear and whispered the final line of the song.

"Because I knew you, I have been changed. For good." He then leaned in and pressed a chaste kiss to Blaine's cheek before resuming his position on Blaine's shoulder.

Blaine felt a tightness in his throat that he had never experienced before. His heart felt like it had swelled to three times its size. His entire body was pulsing so strongly with emotion that he could feel himself almost trembling. He cared so deeply for Kurt and he wanted so much to be able to stay this way forever. Right here, right now, with no worries and no such thing as bad. With the smell of vanilla and peppermint that was Kurt's signature smell (vanilla moisturizer and peppermint shampoo) consuming him. With their hands twisted together and their heads resting on each other so that nothing and no one else mattered. Their touch and proximity, the closeness, being the only thing that they could easily identify in the world. Blaine could never remember being this happy, but he somehow knew that he would always be this happy with Kurt. As long as they were together there would always be moments like this.

He couldn't suppress the enormous grin that spread over his face.

* * *

It was a long ride back to Westerville from Columbus. The traffic was insane and Blaine was trying not to let the fact that no one knows how to drive bother him. He was focusing instead on the night that he'd just had with Kurt. Kurt hadn't said much on the ride back and Blaine was sure he was still in shock over the show he'd just seen and the night they'd had. When Blaine told him over dinner that they were going to see Wicked, he thought Kurt was going to break down sobbing. Kurt was so surprised that he couldn't even formulate a response aside from gaping wordlessly at Blaine. Instead, he reached his arm over the table and grabbed Blaine's hand, locking their fingers together. Blaine could see the tears in his eyes and squeezed his hand. He wanted Kurt to know that he understood how grateful he was.

"Happy Valentine's Day, baby," he had said simply and Kurt beamed at him, his eyes shiny with tears.

When Kurt had told him that he'd never actually seen the show before, Blaine was completely floored. He knew how obsessed Kurt was with it and couldn't believe he loved it _that _much without ever even seeing it.

"We don't really have the kind of money to splurge on flying out to New York City and seeing shows on Broadway," Kurt had said, frowning slightly and shrugging his shoulders. "But I knew just by listening to the soundtrack and watching clips on Youtube that it was the best show I'd ever see, yaknow, if I ever got the chance to. It's my dream to one day be in it. I know there aren't many male characters, except for the munchkins and I'm too tall to play one of them, though I think you'd fit right in." Kurt had giggled and Blaine had rolled his eyes with fake laugh. "But maybe a flying monkey or Boq. I'd be a tree if they wanted me to. I'd do anything for a chance to be in that show one day."

Blaine had made a mental note of this and they had continued their conversation until it was time to leave for the theatre.

* * *

Around an hour or so later, they finally found themselves back at Blaine's house. Blaine was happy to see that his car was the only one now parked in the driveway; that meant his parents were out and there was a chance they might not be coming home. Blaine hoped so. It didn't really matter whether or not they were home, though. If they _were_ home they certainly wouldn't be bothering with him anyway. He walked around the car to open Kurt's door for him and then grabbed his hand immediately once he was outside. He grabbed Kurt's backpack from the trunk, slung it over his shoulder and the two boys walked towards the door.

"Well, here we are again. I'd say home sweet home, but yaknow, it's not very sweet here. Although, with you here it already seems to be far more promising than usual," Blaine said once they were inside. "My parents aren't home yet, who even knows if they _will _be coming home tonight. It doesn't really matter though, cause they won't come looking for me regardless and we'll have everything to ourselves. C'mon, let's go upstairs. I know I promised that you'd become acquainted with my bedroom, and I _hate _to break promises," Blaine said, winking and leaning in to kiss Kurt's cheek.

When they got up to Blaine's room Kurt put his backpack down on the floor and began looking around the room. It was _enormous. _Kurt was sure he'd be able to fit his own bedroom in here at least twice, maybe more. He would die for the walk-in closet that held Blaine's adorable little wardrobe. When he got to Blaine's desk, his breath caught in his throat. Right above it was a corkboard full of pictures of the two of them. Blaine made sure to take a picture almost every single time they went out, but Kurt would never have imagined that he was keeping them all and hanging them in his room. Within a few seconds of staring he felt soft, strong arms wrap around his waist. He leaned into them and melted right into Blaine.

"I hope you don't mind your face being all over my bedroom," Blaine said teasingly.

"Not at all. I'm rather flattered, actually. If it was just a shrine devoted to me, I might think it was a little creepy, but since there are other people on here I find it endearing. You must really like me, huh?" Kurt teased back.

"Eh, you're alright. I guess I'll keep you around."

"So who's this handsome fella?" Kurt asked, pointing to a picture of Blaine and an _extremely _gorgeous semi-older guy. He had a crazy mane of curls just like Blaine, gorgeous blue eyes, and a smile that was to die for. The smile was actually just like Blaine's, but if Kurt was being honest he was partial to his boyfriend's mouth.

"That's my brother, Cooper."

"Oh!" Kurt screeched. "So this is the famous Cooper! Well, not so famous yet, but maybe one day! With those looks he is destined for greatness. Seriously."

"Yeah yeah yeah," Blaine replied with a slight edge to his tone that Kurt didn't like one bit. "Everyone thinks my brother is _so hott. _"Oh my god, Blaine! Can you introduce me to your brother?!" "Blaine is your brother single? Is he into younger women? What about men?" "Do you think I can see his room?" "He's_ so gorgeous_". I get it. He's hott, whatever."

"Oh my," Kurt said, pulling away and turning to face Blaine. "Is someone a little bit _jealous_ just because I think your brother is strikingly handsome?"

"I am _not _jealous of my brother. I'm just tired of hearing about how gorgeous and amazing and wonderful he is. I already know, trust me, nobody lets me forget it," Blaine said, his voice getting quiet. Kurt felt an uncomfortable tug on his heart. He had the feeling that this had nothing to do with Kurt or friends that thought Blaine had a hott brother. It had everything to do with Blaine's parents and how they made Blaine feel like he was inferior to his older brother. Kurt felt anger rising in him and tried to push it back down. He didn't want to say the wrong thing and upset Blaine, and he _definitely _didn't want to spoil the amazing night they'd just had by bringing up his parents or his brother.

"Well, you wanna know what I think?" Kurt asked meekly, raising his hand to cup Blaine's face and stare into his eyes. Blaine stared back at him expectantly, obviously waiting to hear what he thought. "I think that my boyfriend is _much _more handsome and wonderful than Cooper. Your features are all so similar, but yours are better because they're yours. Your smile, your eyes, who you are- everything about you. Cooper may be gorgeous and amazing and wonderful, but you are all of those things and so much more and in such a better way. As long as I can have Blaine, I'd never want Cooper."

Blaine leaned in to kiss Kurt, a soft, sweet kiss. When they pulled apart Blaine reached for Kurt's hand and led him to the bed. Kurt laid back and Blaine crawled to lay on top of him. He cupped Kurt's face the same way Kurt had to his only seconds ago and stared deeply into his eyes. "As long as I could have you, I'd never want anyone else either."

He leaned down and kissed Kurt's mouth again but this time it was passionate and strong, full of want and need and desire. He sucked Kurt's bottom lip into his mouth and Kurt responded enthusiastically, gasping slightly and allowing Blaine's tongue entrance into his mouth. Blaine's tongue explored Kurt's mouth and Kurt let him, practically falling apart under his touch. Blaine's hands roamed up and down Kurt's body- roving over firm arms and scratching down toned stomach, grasping at hands and squeezing perfectly rounded ass- as he wildly wrestled his tongue with Kurt's. Kurt's hands were knotted in Blaine's hair, trying his hardest to release the curls from the gel so that he'd have something more substantial to tug on. Since he was sweating, the gel was disintegrating some and it was becoming much easier.

Blaine moved from Kurt's mouth to his jaw, sucking fiercely and biting down occasionally, scraping along his jawbone in a way that was driving Kurt absolutely insane. He could feel himself getting hard and he wanted nothing more than to rip Blaine's clothes off and fuck him senseless. As Blaine continued sucking intently, working his way now down to Kurt's exposed neck, Kurt threw his head back into the pillows so that it would be more accessible. Blaine took full advantage of this and sucked, licked and bit on every single inch of neck available. He spent a great deal of time on one particular spot, right at Kurt's pulse point. He licked and sucked and bit down hard and scraped teeth over it and then licked and sucked again. Kurt was positive he'd have a mark there tomorrow morning, and the thought turned him on even more.

After Blaine finished paving a roadmap on Kurt's neck he moved back up to his mouth and the two boys fought passionately for dominance. It was a complete mess of tongue and teeth and nothing was sweet or chaste about it. Kurt grabbed Blaine's upper arms, squeezed tight and rolled so that he'd now be on top of the other boy. Once he was on top of Blaine he could feel that Blaine, too, was hard in his jeans. He stared down into Blaine's eyes, which were completely blown out with lust, and deliberately grinded down as hard as he could against him. Blaine let out a long, low, moan, as if he were a dog growling at a stranger, and closed his eyes tight. When he opened them again, Kurt began to unbutton his shirt and Blaine watched intently as each little piece of Kurt's body was revealed to him. He had been dreaming about this moment since the very first moment they'd met. He had wondered many times what Kurt was like underneath all of those wonderfully fashionable clothes he wore. The real thing didn't disappoint.

"Jesus _Christ, _Kurt. You are so fucking gorgeous. I want you- I want you _so bad_," Blaine said, upper body shooting up to where Kurt was straddling him so that he could smash his lips against the other boys. He wrapped his arms around Kurt's back, which made it easy for Kurt to reach down and pulled off both his sweater and t-shirt. He tugged the t-shirt out from under his pants and then pulled both that and his sweater over his head, breaking this kiss quickly to pull them up but reattaching their lips once the clothing was removed. As they continued this way, Blaine's arms wrapped around him and grabbing at Kurt's back and shoulders and ass whenever he could, Kurt took the opportunity to reach down and undo Blaine's belt. Realizing what he was doing, Blaine reached over and undid his as well.

"Pants off, now," Kurt said, jumping off Blaine and quickly removing his pants while Blaine followed suit. The two boys stood staring at each other for several seconds after removing pants, each now clad only in boxer briefs. Finally, Kurt moved towards Blaine and reached his hand down to Blaine's dick, palming over him and pressing down. Blaine's breath caught and he let out a small whimper.

"You're so hard already and so wet too, aren't you, baby? You're ready for me, aren't you? Have been wanting this since we met, that night in the bathroom when I sucked your cock so hard you screamed for me without even knowing my name. You wanna do that again, baby? Scream for me. Scream my name? I can help you do that, you know. I can make _sure _that you wind up screaming my name all night long." As he said this he was rubbing Blaine's hard dick and Blaine's legs were growing weaker and weaker. Kurt pushed Blaine backward (with very little forced required) and Blaine fell sitting onto the bed. Kurt kneeled down between his legs and reached for the waistband of his boxer briefs. He pulled them down in one swift movement and watched as Blaine's hard, throbbing dick sprang to life and bounced up against his stomach.

"Hello again," Kurt said, speaking in an extremely seductive whisper to Blaine's dick as though they were old friends.

Before Blaine could say or do anything else, Kurt had leaned in and captured his entire dick into his mouth. Blaine could feel his head hitting the back of Kurt's throat and thought he was going to pass out from the pleasure that was coursing through him. Kurt's hands rubbed up and down Blaine's toned stomach as he worked him over. Blaine watched as Kurt sucked him off, tears in his eyes and drool dripping down his mouth because he was _completely _deep throating Blaine as though it was the easiest thing he'd ever done. He sucked tantalizingly hard, pressing his tongue over the seeping, wet head, brushing along firmly over the bulging veins. His cheeks were hallowed out and the suction that his warm, firm mouth was providing was making Blaine's head spin. He fell back onto his elbows, throwing his head back and moaning deeply with pleasure. Within a few seconds he was panting out Kurt's name, just as Kurt had promised he'd make him.

"Kurt, I- ah! _Oh fuck, Kurt. _I- baby, ah!_ mmm, ah, mmm. KURT. _If you, if, _ah shit, oh SHIT, KURT. FUCK! _I'm gonna- c-come." Blaine was spluttering and stuttering and moaning and panting and pretty much falling apart under Kurt's mouth. He didn't want to come yet though so he pulled Kurt's mouth off of his dick, grudgingly of course, and pulled Kurt up to meet him. He moved up the bed, dragging Kurt with him, and then crawled on top of Kurt once more. He was laying on top of Kurt, his hard dick grazing against Kurt's hip, and the friction was driving him crazy. He reached over and ripped Kurt's underwear off him, wanting nothing more right now than to fuck him.

"Lube?" Kurt asked breathlessly, as his dick, just as hard and wet as Blaine's, came free.

"Yeah," Blaine replied, shifting quickly on his bed so that he could reach into a drawer in his bedside table and pull out a bottle of lube and a box of condoms.

"Perfect. Now finger me and fuck me like you've never fucked anyone before so that I can make you scream my name again and you can hear me screaming yours," Kurt said as casually as if he were telling Blaine what the weather was like outside.

"You cannot fucking talk to me like that, when I am _this fucking hard. _Because I swear to god, I could just come right now at the thought of it. Jesus _fuck, _Hummel."

Blaine squeezed the lube into his hands and breathed into them, warming up the liquid before rubbing it along his fingers and pressing them down to Kurt's entrance. Kurt moaned at just the slightest sensation of Blaine's fingers near his hole. Blaine wished that he had a cock ring because he was terrified that the look on Kurt's face and the noises that he was going to make as he fingered him were going to be enough to make him come. As he rubbed and pressed hard at Kurt's entrance, he used his other hand to stroke Kurt's hard, wet dick. Kurt's eyes fell closed, his face went pink and he closed his mouth into tight, pursed lips, obviously biting back a loud moan. Finally, Blaine slipped one finger inside Kurt's tight hole and watched as Kurt's breath hitched and his eyes flew open. He pulsed his finger easily, slowly, gently in and out of Kurt's hole easing him open and trying not to hurt him. When Kurt started grinding down against him he added another finger and began scissoring them back and forth, working Kurt open and looking for his spot. He scissored and crooked and pressed down, finally finding the glorious bundle of nerves and rubbing viciously over them, making Kurt let out a loud scream.

"_OH GOD, BLAINE. THERE, oh GOD, right THERE!" _

_"_I know, baby, I know. _FUCK, _you are absolutely fucking gorgeous like this. I never want to hear anything else but you screaming my name."

Blaine quickly slid in a third finger, thrusting his fingers in and out as Kurt grinded down on them, moaning and panting and completely wrecked. Blaine was so hard that it was starting to hurt and he removed his free hand from stroking Kurt's dick and moved it to his own, pumping hard to find some friction and release. Kurt immediately reached his own hand up to work over where Blaine's hand had left, and Blaine was dizzy with desire as he felt Kurt clenching around his fingers and watched as he pumped himself. Kurt was writhing with pleasure beneath him and he knew it was time.

As if on cue, Kurt looked at him, blue eyes clouded by the blown out pupils, and said "Fuck me, now." As Blaine continued fingering him and stroking himself, Kurt reached over and grabbed the box of condoms and lube, pulling out a condom, ripping the wrapper off and fitting it around Blaine's hard, throbbing cock. He squeezed out some lube and swatted Blaine's hand away from his cock, replacing it and beginning to stroke down his length with the lube. Blaine was pretty much fucking into Kurt's hand as he fucked his fingers into his ass and everything was too much. Thankfully, within seconds Kurt thought he was lubed up enough and pulled him down and on top of him. Once Blaine pulled his fingers out, Kurt wasted no time in guiding his dick to his entrance and pushing down.

Once he was fully inside, both boys let out loud long _screams. _Blaine started thrusting at a very slow pace, obviously not wanting to hurt Kurt by moving too fast, but Kurt was having none of it. With one quick movement, like he did earlier, he grabbed Blaine by the arms and rolled them over so that Blaine was laying down and Kurt was straddled on top of him. Blaine was surprised and temporarily taken aback, but all thought was washed from his mind the second Kurt started riding him. There was nothing delicate about it, and Blaine continued to fuck up into Kurt as Kurt rode him. Kurt's hard dick flailed up and down as he rocked, his head thrown back, eyes closed in pleasure, his hands holding on to Blaine's arms for support. Blaine was close, could tell Kurt was close too.

"Soon. _Oh god! Baby. _Soon." Blaine's voice was almost hysterical; high-pitched and cracking and breathless. He wrapped his hand around Kurt's length and began to stroke him extremely fast, twisting and pressing down in all the right places, making Kurt just as hysterical as he was.

Within a few minutes, Blaine felt the tightness in his stomach, felt his balls retract and knew he was coming right into Kurt's ass (Kurt! _ .god. KURT!)_. The wave of pleasure coursed through his body and every piece of him went numb as he continued to thrust up into Kurt as he rode out his orgasm. Kurt had also come (_Blaine. BlaINE! BLAINE! OH OH OH!)_, splattering thick, white liquid all along Blaine's hand and stomach. His firm grip on Blaine's arm had grown even tighter and Blaine thought he might even have fingerprint-sized marks there when all was said and done. After both boys finished riding out their orgasms, Kurt rolled off Blaine, collapsing with completely dead weight onto the bed next to his boyfriend. Blaine rolled the condom off him, tied it up and reached over to throw it into the wastebasket next to his bed. He felt like his body was weighed down with lead, but he made the slight effort to reach over, grab a tissue and clean himself up; he chucked that into the basket as well.

Both boys lay next to each other staring up at the ceiling, unmoving, trying to regain their composure after the best orgasms of their lives. Finally, after a few minutes, Kurt rolled over and rested his head on Blaine's chest, curling his arm around his waist and tangling their legs together. (He thought maybe they should at least put underwear on but then realized he was too tired to care). Blaine wrapped his arms around his boyfriend and began running his fingers through his hair.

After some time just laying together, Kurt looked up at Blaine, resting his chin on his chest where his head had just been. He looked thoughtful and slightly confused. Blaine rubbed the area between his eyes to ease the deep creasing that had been made by his eyebrows being furrowed so tightly together. "What's the matter, baby? Aren't you happy? That was _amazing_."

"Yeah, it was, it _definitely was. _That was the best orgasm I've ever had. And I am happy- so, so happy. But, I was just wondering, not that I regret what happened or anything, and believe me I wanted what just happened. I don't want to make it seem like-"

"Kurt," Blaine giggled, bringing his hand up to caress Kurt's face. "You're starting to sound like me- rambling on and on. Just say it."

"Well," Kurt said, biting his lip shyly, "did you know this was going to happen when you planned tonight? When you asked me to pack a bag and spend the night, did you know that we'd wind up having sex? Were you planning it all along? Not that I mind what happened, like I said, I don't regret it and I wanted it and I'm happy. I'm just…wondering is all."

Blaine paused for a second, staring deeply into Kurt's eyes before smiling. "Honestly, I didn't _know _it was going to happen. But I did hope. I've wanted this with you for weeks now. Well, actually, I've wanted it with you from that first night we met. But I wanted it to happen the right way at the right time, when both of us were happy with each other and comfortable and ready with it happening. And before, when you said that thing about always choosing me over my brother, I just, I felt it in my heart and I _knew _that it was the right moment. Nobody has ever made me as happy as you have, Kurt. I wanted this to be special and I think that what you said to me before is the most special and wonderful thing anyone has _ever_ said to me. I _really _care about you, Kurt. I hope I've made that obvious by now."

Kurt went slightly pink and let out a relieved sigh, smiling up at Blaine and batting his beautiful, long eyelashes at him bashfully. "You have, and I hope I have as well. I meant what I said before. I'd choose you over anyone else, including your brother, every single day of the week. I am the happiest I've ever been now that I'm with you. I never want this feeling to go away. I never want you to go away."

Blaine's heart pounded in his chest as Kurt voiced what he had been feeling earlier. He felt the swooshing in his stomach as adrenaline coursed through him. He smiled brightly down at his beautiful boyfriend. "Well I guess that's a good thing, because I'm never going away. Happy Valentine's Day, Kurt."

"Happy Valentine's Day, Blaine. Our first Valentine's Day together," Kurt said happily.

"The first of many," Blaine responded as he leaned down and pressed one final, gentle kiss to his boyfriend's lips.


	12. Chapter 12

A/N: I dedicate this chapter, this story, all of my stories, to Cory Monteith's memory. When I first started watching Glee, Finn was my first love and the Finchel storyline is what kept me coming back wanting and needing more. Glee has inspired me beyond any writable words- to believe in myself, to shoot for the stars, to be me and always follow my own dreams. Finn Hudson once sang "That faraway prize, a world of success is waiting for me if I heed the call. I won't settle down, won't settle for less as long as there's a chance that I can have it all." With those words Finn, Cory, Glee, they gave me new life and the courage to listen to only the voice in my head and follow only the direction that my inner compass wanted me to follow. It literally changed my whole life.

So Cory, baby, you will never be forgotten. Those who love us never really leave us. They're here, you see- right in your heart. And they always will be. Cory will always be with us and he will never be forgotten. As long as you can sing along to Don't Stop Believin', as long as you can laugh along with the horrible lack of dance skills that embodies Finn Hudson, and as long as you can believe in yourself- because that's good enough for him.

Rest in peace, Cory, honey. You are now amongst the angels and we all know you're looking down on us; shining above like the bright star that you are and helping us all to believe that we've gotta be ourselves. We'll never stop believing.

Cory Allan Michael Monteith: May 11, 1982- July 13, 2013. Only the good die young.

* * *

As March rolled around, the boys barely noticed the way the weather shifted from harshly cold to moderately chilly. The time was practically flying, they were so busy. McKinley would be competing in their Sectionals this coming weekend and Dalton would be competing in theirs the week after. Practices were intense and extended for much longer than usual (or than necessary). The boys found themselves not getting home until eight or nine o'clock most nights. This prevented them from seeing much of each other and limited their contact to occasional phone calls and sneaked text messages.

McKinley's Sectionals would be held at McKinley this year and they'd be facing the Testostertones, an all boy group from a private school in the area, and the Beatbox Bunch, a group of the scariest and most _unique _(putting it nicely) bunch of people Kurt had ever seen. He'd gone and seen both groups perform with the rest of New Directions and Mr. Schue, just to assess the competition and know what they'd be facing. To be quite honest, Kurt wasn't sure why they were even practicing at all. There was absolutely no way they'd lose to either of those groups even if they didn't know the songs they were singing. The New Directions were the best glee club in Lima, and the other schools knew it. Kurt was extremely frustrated with the rigorous rehearsal schedule Mr. Schue had implemented. There was simply no reason to be taking it _that _seriously.

He voiced these same frustrations to Blaine on the phone two days before Sectionals.

"It's just _stupid," _Kurt spat out, the edginess more then evident in his voice. "I haven't seen you in like, 20 days or something ridiculous. That's almost three fucking weeks. It would be one thing if the rehearsals were limited to weekdays so I'd be able to have a _life _on the weekends, but the fact that he's got us booked for all day Saturday and Sunday too is just way too much! You would think this was Nationals we were rehearsing for. Ohdeargod," Kurt said so fast that Blaine thought he'd missed part of the conversation, "_Nationals. _Blaine, if this is what he's doing to us now, for Sectionals, I can't even imagine what he's going to do if we make it to Nationals this year. It's gonna be a fucking nightmare."

Blaine let out a small chuckle as Kurt groaned into the phone. "I know what you're feeling, baby. The Warblers are a bunch of dictators lately. Being around them is almost worse than torture. I have to bring a change of clothes to practice because they have us dancing so much that I can't stay in my uniform without being drenched. It's exhausting. But it's almost over and then everything will be back to normal and we'll be able to see each other again."

"No we won't," Kurt said and once again Blaine could hear the exasperation in his voice. "Because once Sectionals rehearsals are over then it will be Regionals rehearsals and then, for one of us, Nationals rehearsal. And then the year will be over and I would have never seen you. Can't we just quit and run away?" Kurt said only half-joking.

Blaine was silent for a minute or so but when he spoke he was suddenly more serious. "We're gonna be competing against each other at Regionals."

"Yeah," Kurt said, as thought it was the most obvious statement he'd ever heard. "Of course we are. Dalton and McKinley compete against each other at Regionals almost every year. The Warblers always win their sectionals and we always win ours. It's pretty pointless to even _have _a Sectionals in the first place, which brings me back, _yet again_, to the thing I've been saying for _weeks._ This is _stupid." _

Kurt huffed in annoyance, but Blaine wasn't even listening. He knew Dalton and McKinley always competed against each other. He and Kurt had almost stopped seeing each other because of the feud that exists between their groups. But it seemed to dawn on him for the first time since he and Kurt got together that they were _actually _going to have to go against each other and pretend they hated each other. They'd have to be in the same place at the same time, but they'd have to pretend they didn't know each other. The thought of it made him feel uneasy. They'd been keeping their relationship secret for a while now, but this would be different. Now, they'd actually be around each other and would have to completely ignore one another.

"Earth to Blaine. Hello? You still there? Did I lose you?" Kurt was rounding off question after question until Blaine finally snapped out of his reverie.

"Yeah. I'm still here. Sorry. I was just… thinking. Regionals. We're gonna be together, in the same place, but we're gonna have to pretend we don't know each other. We're gonna have to pretend we hate each other. It's gonna be so _weird." _His voice sounded sad and Kurt felt a tiny tug on his heartstrings.

"Yeah, I thought about that a couple of times, too," Kurt said simply. "But we knew this would happen when we got together. We promised it would be okay and that we'd just keep it a secret and no one would have to know. You'd stay with the Warblers and I'd be with New Directions and life goes on. It'll be okay." Kurt tried to sound reassuring but he, too, felt that the entire situation was shitty. What did it matter if he wanted to go over and kiss Blaine for good luck before he went on stage to perform? Why shouldn't it be alright for Blaine to go and find him and squeeze him tight before the New Directions' numbers? The whole rivalry was completely overrated and Kurt couldn't stand it.

_"_Yeah I know it'll be okay, but that doesn't mean it'll feel any better. It's gonna suck being around you, _finally _being able to see you for the first time in so long and not being able to come over and even say a fucking hello. I mean, what the hell. I can't even chance looking at you in case someone sees and wants to know what I'm looking at. It's just complete bullshit."

"I know. It sucks. But we'll get through it. It's only one day and then it'll all be over," Kurt said, trying to sound optimistic. He was trying to convince himself as much as Blaine that it wouldn't be _that _bad and then it would be over. "And hey, the bright side is that you can come and see me at Sectionals and I can come and see you at yours and no one would even know who we were. But we'd know we were there for each other."

"Yeah, but that's about all we can do. _See each other._ I can't come and find you after and congratulate you or kiss you or hug you. I can clap along in the audience like everyone else. Like a fucking stranger," Blaine said bitterly. Kurt could tell that no amount of reassurance or optimistic commentary was going to make Blaine feel any better about this.

"Well at least I'll get to see you for a little bit afterwards. If it doesn't end too late maybe we can get coffee. If it does, well, I know you're gonna be in that audience clapping for me and that's enough. Does it suck? Royal balls. But we don't have any control over it. We have to keep it a secret. And just knowing that you're there for me is the best thing I could have ever asked for. I've never had that before, and I'm not about to risk it because of one lousy day of Regionals." Kurt's tone was adamant and Blaine smiled. He hated that he couldn't see Kurt right now or tell people about having the most wonderful boyfriend in the world, but he was so enamored with him that if being in the audience was enough for Kurt then it would be enough for him.

"I'm sorry I'm bitching. You're right, of course. I'm just cranky and tired and annoyed that I can't shout from the rooftops that I have the greatest boyfriend in the world. And if not from the rooftops then at least to the Warblers, to Puck. Blaaaaaaaaah." Blaine whined into the phone.

Kurt giggled. "You're adorable. And I know completely what you mean. The last thing I wanna do is hide you away from the rest of the world, pretend that you're not the most wonderful thing that's ever happened to me. I wanna drag you out in public and lock arms and show you off. I wanna hold your hand and kiss you and flaunt you like a gorgeous, tailored suit. But we just _can't _do that. Not for now at least. Maybe in the summer, when school is out and glee clubs have died down we can tell people, maybe prepare for the following year? Maybe we can get the Warblers to bend the rules a bit. They're all your best friends, they have to understand. But for right now, we just have to keep doing what we've been doing. It's been working so far, there's no reason to go changing things now."

"I know, I know. Thank you for trying to make the best of this, for trying to stay optimistic. I'm a grump and I'm sorry."

"You don't have to apologize to me, silly. I get it, remember? It'll be okay. I know it."

Blaine smiled once more and then felt his smile turning into a deep yawn. He checked the clock and when he saw that it was only 10:45 he frowned. It was still pretty early, but he was _so tired. _As much as he wanted to stay on the phone with Kurt forever, he really had to shower and then go to bed.

"As much as I hate to do this-"

"I heard that yawn. I know it's time for bed," Kurt cut him off. Blaine let out a little chuckle that turned into another loud yawn. "Alright, alright. I get it. _Jeeze_. You don't have to yawn me away," Kurt teased.

"I'm sorry. I can't stop. I'm dead tired and I still have to shower. Thank god I didn't get homework tonight, I'd be a zombie doing that shit."

"Well I don't want to keep you anymore. If you turn into a zombie you might eat me!" Kurt teased again.

"Oh, baby. I don't need to be a zombie to want to eat you," Blaine said, turning on the flirt. Kurt blushed furiously, grateful for the fact that Blaine couldn't see him, and let out a snort of a laugh in response.

"Oh god you _are tired. _Go to bed, honey. We'll talk tomorrow, hopefully. If not, I'll see you on Saturday at Sectionals! I'm so, _so _excited that you're gonna be there. I can't wait for you to see!" Kurt sounded like an over-enthused little kid and Blaine couldn't help but smiling again at how cute he was.

"I can't wait to see you either. And I _really _hope it ends early so that I can _actually _see you."

"Likewise. Fingers crossed! Okay, go to bed now. Goodnight, babe," Kurt said sweetly.

"Night, baby." As he hung up and undressed for his shower, Blaine couldn't stop smiling at the fact that he'd see Kurt in less than 48 hours.

* * *

When Blaine woke up on Saturday morning the first thing he did was grab his phone to text Kurt good luck. He wasn't sure what time he had to be at McKinley, but since Sectionals started at 6:30 he assumed he'd have to be there sometime in the early afternoon. Blaine had slept in and it was already close to noon.

**Hey! Good morning/kinda afternoon already. I just wanted to wish you good luck for today, though I know you definitely won't need it. I can't wait to see you. I'll be clapping and screaming harder and louder than anyone else. Text me after everything dies down and let me know if you want to meet for coffee. I'll probably stick around Lima for a while and hopefully when you get out we can go straight to the Bean. See you soon! Break a leg! **

He read through the text once and then sent it. Kurt responded almost immediately and Blaine knew he was probably getting ready: **Thank you so much! I'm so excited and actually nervous. Not nervous for the competing, but just knowing that you're gonna be there. I want you to be impressed. Haha. **

Blaine laughed out loud. Leave it to Kurt to not actually be nervous about the thing he should be nervous about, but to be nervous because he was going to be there. He let out another chuckle as he responded: **You're too much. You would****be nervous just because I'm gonna be there. But there's no reason. I'm always impressed by you, no matter what you do. You could completely choke out there and I would still be enamored and think it was the most fantastic thing I'd ever seen. So don't worry about me! Just be the amazing, gloriously talented person I know you are and I promise I will be more than impressed. **

Blaine jumped in the shower quickly after sending the text and when he got out Kurt still hadn't responded. _He's probably doing his hair, or his skin care routine, _Blaine thought to himself. He smiled fondly. A few seconds later, his phone vibrated on his bed and he picked it up to read Kurt's reply as he massaged his head with his towel to dry out his wet curls: **Aw shucks. Well thank you. I hope so. I have to get going soon. Schuester wants us all there by 2pm. For what I don't even fucking know. He's completely mental. I won't be able to answer once I get there so if you text and get nothing back that's why. **

Blaine shook his head and rolled his eyes. He figured he'd have to get there early, but it was still so dumb to get there four and a half hours before. What the hell would they even be able to _do _such last minute? Still shaking his head, he composed a response: **I figured you'd have to get there early, that's why I wanted to text you now. I wanted to make sure I got to wish you good luck before you wouldn't be able to see it. I'm probably gonna get there around 5:45, make sure I get a good seat. I wanna be able to sit right in front and cheer as loudly as possible. =) **

As he pulled on his favorite dark blue jeans, neglecting underwear because they looked much nicer without the line of his boxer-briefs, Kurt responded: **I think that'll be good. I really hope it ends early so that I can see you. I'll text you after everything, once everyone leaves and goes their own way. Well, they'll all probably wanna go out and celebrate together, but I can pretend I'm too tired so that I can see you instead. I'd much rather****see you instead. Quite frankly, I'm tired of them. Lol. **

After he pulled on a nice purple polo t-shirt Blaine responded: **Well I definitely won't object to you ditching them. I really wanna see you too. Just text me and let me know, then. I'll be waiting for you. ;) **

A few seconds later Kurt responded. He was wasting no time and Blaine could tell he was probably hurrying around to make sure he had/did everything before he left: **Okay, we'll talk soon then. I gotta get going though. Hate to cut you short, but still so much to do before I have to leave. (**_Bingo! _Blaine thought) **I'll keep you posted, promise. **

He assured Kurt not to worry and told him once more to break a leg, ending the conversation and checking the clock. It was still early and he had plenty of time to kill before he had to leave for Lima. It was gonna be a long day.

* * *

Blaine got to McKinley at 5:47, right on time, and found a seat right in front because there was barely anyone there. He checked Twitter and Facebook and anything else possible to distract him while he waited for 6:30 to arrive. The house began to pack as people showed up. A lot of them were big families, probably relatives of the students competing. And then, to Blaine's utter horror, as the houselights went down at 6:27, he saw, out of the corner of his eye, a pack of navy blue, red-lined blazers. His heart stopped and his head got fuzzy and he was _sure _the walls were closing in around him. Of _course_ the Warblers would be here! How could he forget?! They come every year to check out McKinley and see what they'd be needing to prepare for when they faced them at Regionals. This was a nightmare. There was no way out. He'd never be able to get out of here without them seeing him. But then, maybe he could- the houselights were already down and things were already gonna be getting started, maybe he'd be able to get out without being seen. But he couldn't do that. He couldn't leave. He had promised he'd be here for Kurt. He _wanted _to be here for Kurt. He wasn't leaving. He was going to stay where he was and if the Warblers saw him he'd just say he came to check out the competition just like them. Hopefully no one suspected anything.

Blaine's heart was hammering uncontrollably in his chest; it was actually becoming painful. He took deep breaths to relax and ducked lower in his chair, hoping to avoid being seen. The emcee for the evening came out to give the introductions, let the audience know that the theme was 'Blast from the Past' and give a brief welcome speech. He then introduced the Testostertones. Blaine snorted at the name and thought, _very clever. _

The Testostertones were decent, but Blaine knew what the New Directions were usually like and there was simply no way they stood a chance of winning. They did an 80s medley of "Rebel Yell" by Billy Idol, "Livin' on a Prayer" by Bon Jovi, and "Every Breath You Take" by the Police. Blaine thought it was an odd combination of music, but they pulled it off well enough.

When the Beatbox Bunch started their performance Blaine stared with his mouth agape simply not understanding. They had chosen the 50s as their decade, but their decision remained a complete puzzle to Blaine. Every song they performed was backed by beatboxing, and the music of the 50s plus beatboxing did not a good combination make. It was just… wrong. They didn't even pick _good songs _from the decade. First they did "Tequila" by The Champs, which basically had one word in the entire song, then they did "Earth Angel" by The Penguins (Blaine was in physical pain from the beatbox combination of this song) and they finished with "Walkin' After Midnight" by Patsy Kline. Blaine thought that if they had changed the arrangement some to _fit _the style of music they were doing it might have been bearable. But beatboxing to those songs in their original arrangements was just way beyond any comprehension. They'd never make it to Regionals.

Blaine held his breath as the emcee introduced New Directions. He couldn't wait to see Kurt.

He was kind of shocked when he saw Santana walk out on stage. He knew she was in the New Directions as well, he had just forgotten. The music started and she started singing "Unforgettable" by Nat King Cole. Her raspy voice was absolutely beautiful for this song and Blaine found himself beaming at her. She sounded _amazing. _The rest of the girls came out and joined her for their second song "Can't Buy Me Love" by the Beatles. A short, petite girl with brown hair sang lead on this song while Santana and a girl with short Blonde hair he was _sure _he'd seen before (she was probably a Cheerio and a friend of Santana's) sang backup. The rest of the girls filled in the background harmonies and it was absolutely gorgeous.

After an extremely loud round of applause, the girls left the stage and all of the boys came on. A tall, stocky boy with brown hair that flipped up in the front started singing "American Pie" by Don McLean. He had a voice that was perfectly suited for the song. Soft but rough and smooth all at once. Halfway through the slow beginning another boy, also tall and stocky but with a bleached-blonde Justin Bieber haircut, took over. As the beat picked up, the rest of the boys joined in with amazing harmonies and, shortly after, the girls joined on stage for the rest of the song. (They didn't do the whole song, which was smart, Blaine thought, as the entirety is over eight minutes long). Blaine was in awe of how well they pulled off such a timeless song. He hated them for being so good.

The lights went down and the stage was black. The applause was deafening and Blaine thought it was over. But then a single spotlight shone on the stage and Blaine's breath caught in his throat. Kurt alone stood center stage. A soft piano started playing and Kurt started singing "Everything I Do (I Do It For You)" by Bryan Adams. Towards the end, the short petite brown-haired girl and the tall, stocky boy with the brown hair joined him to fill in the harmonies. Blaine's throat felt tight and his heart was simply bursting. Kurt's voice was the most beautiful thing he had ever heard and he couldn't believe how proud he was. That wonderful, gorgeous, talented boy was his. All his. He had never been so happy in his entire life.

When Kurt finished his song, the applause was absolutely insane. All of the members of New Directions came out for a final bow and the audience was wild. Blaine stood up, shouting himself hoarse and clapping until his hands were red and raw. He knew they were the competition. He knew that he was supposed to 'hate' them, but right now, nothing else mattered but him and Kurt. Kurt, his boyfriend, and how wonderful he had been on that stage. How wonderful he _always was. _He was beaming from ear to ear as he screamed and kept clapping.

* * *

It was no surprise when the emcee announced that the New Directions were the victors. Everyone in the audience screamed and clapped once more and the New Directions claimed their trophy as confetti streamed down around them. Soon after, as the crowd began to alleviate, Blaine tried to slip out without being seen. He'd wait for Kurt in the car or just go and wait at the Lima Bean- anything to not be seen by his friends. He was just exiting the auditorium when a familiar voice called behind him. He stopped dead, heart pounding once more in his chest. _Fuck. _

"_Blainers_? Is that you?" Blaine knew he couldn't avoid Santana. She knew it was him and she'd _kill him _if he ran away from her.

Spinning around to face her, he pulled his best fake smile. "Hey, Tana! You were absolutely _amazing _out there. My god, that song was pretty much made for your voice. It was gorgeous." He was rambling and he knew it so he cut himself short. He didn't want to make her suspicious by seeming nervous or rambling. He walked over and wrapped her in a hug.

"What are you doing here? Come to check out the competition? Trying to see how badly you're gonna be beat at Regionals?" Santana was taunting him, but he was too nervous to care.

Shrugging and feigning nonchalance he replied just as smugly. "Yeah, sure. You wish."

"You'll see. So what're you doing now? We're gonna go out to get something to eat or whatever, probably Breadstix as usual. You wanna come? I know it's like, seriously offensive to your Warblers, and you have this hate pact and such, but I think us being blood related trumps that shit, so you should come. The other guys won't mind. I'm the boss and I insist."

Blaine's mouth went dry. There was no way he could get out of this. He knew how Santana was and he knew she'd never let this go. _Oh good fucking job, Blaine, now you're stuck. _"Yeah- yeah sure. I guess I'll come. The Warblers don't have to know. It'll be fine."

"Great. I'm gonna go get changed and meet up with the rest of the guys and then I'll come back and get you."

"Great," Blaine responded. He felt his stomach jolt painfully at the disaster he'd just gotten himself into.


	13. Chapter 13

Blaine was pacing up and down the hallway outside the auditorium waiting for Santana to get back. He was wringing the Sectionals playbill between his hands to the point of near-shredding he was so nervous. His brain was on complete overload. Everything was going to shit and there was no way he could control it. Everyone would know. This was all going to blow up in their faces. Kurt was going to be kicked out of New Directions and then the Warblers would eventually find out and he'd be kicked out too. They were so stupid to believe they could keep something this major a secret. It's not like they watched a dirty movie and had to hide it from their parents. They were in a committed relationship behind the backs of all of their friends and when it was defying the most explicit of rules, rules that should never, and _could _never be broken.

Blaine could see everything unfurling before him, his brain drawing up image after image of everything spiraling down, down, down. _What am I going to do? I have to try and leave. I'll just go home, tell Santana that I wasn't feeling well, and then call Kurt later on and explain that I got caught. He'll understand. Jesus Christ, how did I let this happen? He's gonna be so disappointed that I left. And I want to see him so badly and now I won't be able to. And god only knows the next time I'll be able to see him now. This is such a disaster. _

He paused in his pacing as a solution occurred to him. _Just pretend- like we've been doing all along. When I see Kurt I'll just pretend I've never met him before, and when we get introduced to each other I'll act calm and normal as though it was the first time. I'll stay close to Santana and stay as quiet as possible and then at the end of the night I'll say goodbye to everyone, and Kurt, and go home and no one will ever have expected anything. I just have to pretend that I don't know my own boyfriend. How hard could that be? _

Pretty damn hard, was the answer that came most naturally. All Blaine wanted to do was meet his boyfriend for a nice cup of coffee. He wanted to hold him close and kiss him and tell him how amazing he thought he was and how proud of him he was. He wanted alone time with the person he cared about. And now, thanks to his stupid cousin, he was forced to pretend he didn't even _know _him. This was a fucking nightmare. Blaine knew he was going to be miserable all night and he was not at all looking forward to it- despite knowing he'd be able to see Kurt.

As he continued pacing, the phone in his pocket vibrated and rang, snapping Blaine back to reality.

From Kurt: **Hey honey, they're all heading over to Breadstixx now. You still up for coffee? Cause if so then I'll just let them know I'm not gonna be going out with them. **

Blaine sighed and rubbed his hand violently up and down his face. He wanted nothing more than to tell Kurt to ditch them, and he knew Kurt was going to be upset when he told him the mess he'd gotten himself into. He groaned audibly as he typed out a reply: **Well, I have a change in plans and I don't think you're gonna be too happy about it. I'm not happy about it either, but there's no way out of it. My cousin, Santana, she saw me as she was leaving the auditorium and she invited me out to Breadstixx with all of you guys. She insisted, and when Santana insists it is almost impossible to say no. I couldn't get out of it. So, well, I'm gonna be going with you guys. **

He sent the first text and then kept typing, wanting to reassure Kurt that everything was going to be okay before he had the same meltdown that Blaine had minutes before: **It'll be okay. All we have to do is pretend we've never met and just go with the flow of basic introductions and etc. And then by the end of the night we can ditch them early and go and get coffee at the Bean. They'll never have to know anything and nothing ever needs to come out. We just have to stay calm and relax and not panic. It'll all be fine if we just keep acting and doing what we have been all along. **

Kurt responded midway through Blaine typing out the follow-up text. Blaine knew his 'reassuring' text message was shot to hell now: **YOUR COUSIN SANTANA IS SANTANA LOPEZ? CHEERIO SANTANA? HOW COULD YOU NOT HAVE TOLD ME THAT? DO YOU KNOW HOW DANGEROUS THIS IS?!**

From Kurt: **HOW COULD I POSSIBLY RELAX AND NOT PANIC, BLAINE! **

Blaine didn't know how to respond. He had truly forgotten that Santana went to McKinley with Kurt. It just wasn't a connection he ever made. They'd spoken about her a couple of times before, in passing when Blaine was talking about his relationships with family members. He'd just never put two and two together to connect both of them back to the same school, let alone glee club. He felt like an idiot.

To Kurt: **Deep breaths, baby, deep breaths. I'm sorry I never made the connection. I'm a little dense sometimes and it just didn't occur to me that you guys were in the same glee club. I'm so sorry. I never wanted you to be in this situation. But it is GOING TO BE OKAY. I promise. Everything will be fine. No one will know and at the end of the evening it will be just us, just like we wanted. Okay? Please don't freak out. Please trust me- trust us. **

Blaine resumed pacing as he waited for Kurt's reply. He hoped he'd calm down some. He needed him to not be on edge for this. If they both seemed weird and nervous people were _going to _pick up on it. They needed to act normal.

The phone in his hand vibrated once more and Blaine took a deep breath as he looked down at the reply. He exhaled deeply when Kurt was no longer screaming in caps lock with exclamation points: **Okay. Alright. Fine. I trust you, I do, you know that I do. But Blaine, this is SANTANA we are talking about. If it were anyone else I'd be way less anxious about it. And she's your cousin and I know how much you love her so I don't want to say anything badly about her to you, but she's not exactly the most… well, friendly person. Not to me anyway. And if she ever caught wind of this it'll all be over. She'd tell the rest of the Cheerios and they'd tell the whole school and everything would completely explode. That can't happen, Blaine. It just can't. It would ruin everything. And I'm not just talking about me being in glee and me having to deal with the assholes at school, I'm talking about us. And you and the Warblers. Just, everything. **

The tension in Blaine mounted again at Kurt's words. He was right after all. He loved Santana, but he knew she was a gossip queen. But she'd never just out them without talking to Blaine first. She'd never intentionally hurt him. Kurt, maybe, but not Blaine. It would be okay. He was sure of it.

To Kurt: **Santana may be a bitch, she may be a gossip, she may be a lot of things, but what she isn't is hurtful and vindictive. She and I are REALLY close, and even if she caught wind of this (which she won't!) she'd never just out us to the Cheerios and all of McKinley. She'd come to me first and talk to me about it to figure out what was going on. I'm sure of it. You don't need to worry about it. I promise you. I'll worry about Tana, you just worry about calming down so that you're not fidgety and anxious when we 'meet'. You NEED to be as calm and normal as possible. If you can do that we will have nothing to worry about. No one will figure it out. **

Kurt hadn't replied yet when he saw Santana approaching from the opposite end of the hallway. She was flanked by the girls from glee club. Blaine wasn't sure where the boys were, but he was quite grateful they weren't there.

"You ready to get going, hobbit?"Santana asked and Blaine exaggeratedly rolled his eyes. "We're gonna split up into cars because we obvee don't all fit in one car. Boys are going together and girls are going together. I figured since you don't know any of the boys (Blaine felt his stomach knot uncomfortably) you'd just come with us. Sound good?"

Blaine nodded, "Yeah, whatever. Doesn't matter to me."

As Blaine followed the girls out to the parking lot, his phone vibrated with Kurt's response: **Okay. Calming down. Dear GOD, help us. This is gonna be the shitshow of the century. **

Blaine sighed. _Yeah. It is. _

* * *

When the girls drove into the Breadstixx parking lot, Blaine looked out the window expecting to see Kurt's car but hoping it wasn't there yet. Unfortunately, there it was, Kurt's black Navigator- the boys were already here. Blaine gulped. _Here we go. _

As they made their way into the restaurant, Blaine could see a table in the back corner where a group of boys were all gathered around. He couldn't see Kurt yet, but wasn't surprised because all of the boys were _so tall. _Like, all six feet or taller. Why the fuck did he have to be so short? They all seemed much more intimidating at that height and Blaine found that his hands were rapidly growing very clammy. That would make for nicely awkward introductions.

As they reached the table, however, Blaine saw that Kurt wasn't hidden behind the other boys, he just _wasn't there. _Had he gone home? He couldn't have.

"Guys, this is my cousin Blaine," Santana said, and Blaine smiled awkwardly at all of the guys at the table. "Blaine this is Finn," she said, indicating the extremely tall boy with the flipped-up hair that had sang lead at Sectionals. "Sam," she said, pointing at the bleached-blonde-Bieber-alike. "Mike," she said, indicating the tall, good-looking Asian that had sung background for the other two. "Artie," she said, nodding downward at the nerdy-looking boy in the wheelchair. "Guys, this is my cousin Blaine. Now, he may be a Warbler (The petite girl with the brown hair that had sang lead at Sectionals, who Blaine had learned in the car was named Rachel, audibly gasped at the news of Blaine being a Warbler.) but he's been my cousin a lot longer. So forget all that dumb shit. He's not here to spy, he's here to see the prettiest cousin he knows," she smiled smugly as she settled into their large booth.

"But- but what if he _is _here to spy, Santana?! We can't take any chances with Regionals coming up!" Rachel piped up angrily. Her head whirled around as Blaine replied for himself.

"I can assure you that I am not here as a spy. And anyway, the rest of my friends, all the Warblers, were all at your Sectionals tonight. We know what we're working with and what to prepare for. No need for me to play spy," Blaine shot back at Rachel semi-defensively. He smiled shyly at her afterward, hoping to reassure her some and not sound like a total dick.

She didn't look convinced but seemed to have decided it was a battle she would not win. She nodded and looked down intently at the table in front of her.

As Blaine took a seat next to his cousin, he saw Kurt arrive out of the corner of his eye. _Moment of truth. _

"Ah, and here's Lady Hummel now. I wondered where you were," Santana said, and Blaine physically cringed at the nickname. "Hummel, this is my cousin, Blaine, Blaine, this is Kurt Hummel. He's the guy that sounds like a girl," Santana said, winking over at Kurt, who forced a smile. It was painful to watch the exchange.

"I happen to think he had a wonderful voice, Tana," Blaine said courageously, hoping he wasn't giving too much away but wanting and _needing _to stick up for his boyfriend. He looked over at Kurt and spoke directly to him now. "Seriously. Your version of Everything I Do was fantastic. None of our Warblers can sing that high, so we're limited in our song choices. You guys are lucky to have Kurt here. He's a really rare talent," Blaine said with a certain finality in his tone that suggested his word was the only thing that mattered.

Kurt blushed but looked down quickly to gain composure. "Well, thank you, Blaine. But don't worry about it. These guys wouldn't know truly rare talent if it bit them in their asses," he said, winking across the table at him.

Blaine giggled and looked into his lap. _That's my boy, _he thought to himself.

* * *

The rest of the evening went by rather normally. Every time someone directed a question at Blaine he jumped slightly, but as far as he and Kurt were concerned, no one seemed to have any idea at all about them being together. They were out of the woods.

By ten o'clock Blaine decided he wanted to get going. He had to be home by 12 and he wanted to be able to spend time with Kurt alone.

"Hey, Tana, would you mind giving me a ride back to McKinley so I can get my car? I wanna get going. I'm kinda tired and I still have a bit of a drive home." He sent a pointed look over at Kurt to make sure he had heard that he was leaving. Once he got to his car he would text him and let him know he was heading to the Lima Bean.

Kurt heard, indeed, and he piped up before Santana could reply. "Actually, Blaine, I could drop you to your car. I'm gonna start heading home now anyway. I have to be up early tomorrow morning to help my dad with stuff at the shop and I'd rather not be dirty and cranky _and _tired too."

Santana looked between Kurt and Blaine curiously and Blaine felt a sinking feeling in the pit of his stomach. Was she figuring them out? Had Kurt's offer to drive him to his car made her realize something was going on between them?

"No, no, that's okay," Blaine hurried to answer. "I don't want to impose. I'll just wait for my cousin to leave and then I'll have her drop me there. It's not a problem." Santana seemed satisfied with his answer and went back to talking to the pretty blonde, Quinn.

"It's really no problem. I have to pass by McKinley to get home anyway. You're not imposing. It's no big deal," Kurt shrugged with an apathetic look on his face.

"Are- are you sure? I really don't want to put you out. I can just wait for Santana-"

"Oh _jesus, _Blainers," Santana said, turning to face Blaine again with exasperation on her face, "If Porcelain over here wants to give you a ride to your car, just go with him already. I'm probably not leaving now anyway and I don't wanna hear you bitching about how tired you are."

Blaine looked over at Kurt and shrugged. Were they really going to get away with this? _That easily? _It seemed too good to be true, but Blaine wasn't going to argue. "Okay, then. Well, I'm ready whenever you are. I don't wanna make you leave any earlier than you want to, so just let me know when you wanna get going."

Kurt answered almost immediately, "Now's good for me."

Blaine felt his stomach swoop as he nodded and said okay. The boys each got up from the table and said their goodbyes to the group at large. Blaine leaned down to kiss Santana goodbye and tell her he'd speak to her soon.

"You _best _be speaking to me soon, little one. You've been ignoring my phone calls for weeks. I have no idea what's going on in your life. If I didn't run into you tonight I feel like I might've died before I ever spoke to you. I'm onto you, Anderson. You best answer my calls from now on, otherwise I _will _hunt you down and I _will _find out what you're up to. I have ways. Remember that." Santana smiled, kissed his cheek and ruffled his hair- well, tried to anyway.

Blaine laughed uncomfortably and answered probably too quickly. "I'm not up to anything, Tana, I'm just busy is all. We'll speak soon. Promise."

Before she could hound him anymore or ask questions, or before she could see how tense he'd gotten, he turned and followed Kurt out of Breadstixx and to his Navigator.

When they got inside the car Blaine let out a controlled scream- loud enough to release the anxiety and tension that was contracting every muscle in his body, but not enough to draw attention to their car. "Dear _GOD. _I _cannot BELIEVE _we survived that! No one had a clue! That was amazing! We really pulled it off!" He was still yelling and Kurt couldn't help but laugh along as he shouted in joy.

"So coffee then?" Kurt asked as he turned on his car and looked over at Blaine.

Blaine turned to Kurt, eyes suddenly blown out with lust, and said "No, I wanna show you just how _proud _I am of you. How wonderful and talented I think you are. How amazing I think it is to be yours. Let's go to my house."

Kurt gulped and Blaine watched the Adam's apple bob up and down in his throat. "O-okay" he spluttered out. "Okay."

* * *

Everything had happened so fast that they didn't even make it to Blaine's bedroom. His parents weren't home (as usual) and it was lucky, because they barely made it to the living room couch. Clothes were scattered everywhere and Kurt lay on top of Blaine, both boys naked and both extremely hard. They were jerking each other off, panting, sweating and moaning each others' names.

"Need you. Need you now," Kurt squeaked out.

"Condom," was all Blaine managed to say in response. He was moaning loudly and his breathing was irregular. "Upstairs."

"No. Too far. Wanna feel you around me. Want you to take all of me with nothing between us."

Blaine groaned loudly in accord and then sucked his fingers into his mouth, making them nice and wet before slipping them down to his entrance; for lack of lube they'd have to do the trick. Kurt continued to stroke him as he pressed his first finger inside, sharply intaking a large breath and hissing loudly. "You- you can't. Need to stop. I'll come." Kurt understood that Blaine meant he needed him to stop jerking him off, so he removed his hand and instead leaned down to concentrate on sucking every single inch of Blaine's body that his lips could reach. He started by sucking Blaine's tongue into his mouth and Blaine sucked back forcefully. He was moaning and breathing directly into Kurt's mouth as he slipped a second finger inside himself and ground down around them. Eventually it was too much and he broke away screaming Kurt's name aloud.

"Oh _FUCK. FUCK," _Blaine shouted as Kurt moved his mouth down to jaw and then neck and eventually chest. He sucked one of Blaine's nipples into his mouth as Blaine's third finger slipped inside. Kurt could feel Blaine fucking his own fingers below him and his erection throbbed. He reached between them, grabbing his own aching cock, and began to stroke more as he roved his tongue down Blaine's torso. Before Blaine knew what was happening, Kurt was bending down between his legs and his tongue was circling his entrance, forcing its way inside next to his fingers. Blaine shuddered angrily above him and started panting erratically as he grabbed the couch with his free hand in a grip so tight that his knuckles went white. Eventually Kurt pushed Blaine's fingers out of the way and forced his tongue all the way inside, fucking Blaine's hole with his tongue. Blaine was thrusting down and fucking Kurt's face and the sounds that were coming out of him were inhuman. He was screaming and moaning and panting and _screeching _all at once. "OH GOD, OH GOD, OH GOD. STOP STOP." Blaine screamed and pulled Kurt's head up from between his legs.

Kurt leaned down and trapped Blaine's mouth with his once more as he lined up his dick to Blaine's hole and pounded inside. There was nothing gentle about it. There was too much need right now to be nice and easy. Blaine screamed out loud and Kurt groaned deeply, the sound vibrating low in his chest. There was no need for words as Kurt fucked into Blaine and Blaine met him thrust for thrust. The room was dead silent- the only sounds renting the air being moans, pants and the sound of smacking skin on skin. Blaine's hand dug even harder into the sofa until his knuckles were so white they might have been losing proper circulation. The toes on the foot that he had resting on the floor were curled right into the rug. He arched himself up, throwing his arms around Kurt and pressing their foreheads together.

"Gonna come."

"Me too. Wanna fill you up with me. Want you to feel me inside you."

The mere thought of Kurt's come inside of him sent Blaine teetering over the edge. Within seconds he was coming, without any help from Kurt's hand or his own, all over his chest and slightly on Kurt's too. Shortly after that Kurt came, squirting his come deep inside Blaine. Blaine groaned loudly as he felt the liquid filling him up- felt Kurt inside of him. _Holy SHIT. _Both boys were still riding out their orgasms, thrusting shallowly towards one another, when something made Blaine's neck shoot around so quickly that he felt a cramp form instantly.

"Oh. My. _GOD._ Blaine?! _LADY HUMMEL?!" _

Kurt's head whipped around too, and, to his horror, he saw Santana Lopez standing in the door frame staring at the two naked boys on top of each other.


	14. Chapter 14

"I _knew it! _I knew it, I knew it, I _KNEW IT," _Santana was shouting, not bothering to look away as the two boys hastened to get as far away from each other as possible. Kurt pulled out of Blaine so fast that Blaine actually whimpered, causing Santana to make a horrible cringing face and screech. After looking over at his boyfriend in silent apology for being so rough, Kurt scrambled around looking desperately for his underwear; Blaine did the same.

"Jesus Christ, Tana! Why wouldn't you fucking knock? Or ring the goddamn doorbell! It's there for a reason," Blaine spat at her, pulling his jeans on over his briefs and not bothering to roam through the rest of the house to find his shirt. Kurt unfortunately wasn't as lucky, he hadn't even found his underwear yet and was covering up his lower body with a couch pillow. He face was redder than a tomato and Blaine set to work looking as well.

"For your information, I _did _knock _and _I rang the doorbell. I guess you were too busy moaning and panting to hear any of it. I _knew _it."

"WHAT DID YOU KNOW? You keep saying that but I don't understand _what the fuck _you're talking about," Blaine shouted angrily at her as she gaped at him with a face that resembled amazement, or awe. He had found Kurt's underwear inside his jeans and handed both articles of clothing back to him so that he could put them on. Kurt pulled them up so quickly Blaine had to double take to realize he was clothed in less than a second.

"I knew you two were too friendly back there at Breadstixx. I just assumed it was a flirty exchange between a couple of gays who haven't gotten laid in a _long _time… if ever," she said, looking over at Kurt and directing the latter part of the statement to him. ""Oh, I'll take you home, Blaine. It's on my way, Blaine. It's really no problem, Blaine.", she said, mimicking Kurt's voice in a rather high-pitched and cheesy imitation voice. ""Oh but I don't want to be a bother. I simply couldn't. I'm a meek little boy who wants to rip your pants off." It was _so _obvious. But _still. _Jesus Christ, Blaine. I never thought I'd find this going on."

She stared at a speechless Blaine for a few seconds before her eyes went wide and her mouth dropped open. "You broke the cardinal rule," she said quietly.

"You're gonna have to speak up if you want me to hear what you're saying," Blaine deadpanned.

"You two broke the cardinal rule! You're a Warbler. He's a member of the New Directions. It's like a _rule _that we're not allowed to associate, not even to hit it and quit it. You guys are in trouubleeeeee," she said in a sing-song voice that seemed to set Blaine's blood on fire.

"We're only gonna be in trouble if you open you're big fat fucking mouth about it, Tana," Blaine said through gritted teeth. Santana's eyes went wide again as she raised her eyebrows and tilted her head at Blaine questioningly.

"Is that a threat, dear cousin Blainey?" Santana asked tauntingly, smirking at him while she watched his whole body shiver with anger. She was treading on thin ice and she knew it but she wouldn't be Santana Lopez if she didn't push as many buttons as possible.

Blaine closed his eyes and took a deep breath. To her surprise he turned away from her completely and looked over at Kurt who, as he was fighting with his cousin, had been sitting silently on the couch with his hands folded in his lap. He looked like a frightened kindergardener who had just been put in time out by his teacher without a good reason. Santana had completely forgotten that he was even in the room.

"Kurt, can you please give me and my _darling cousin_ here a little bit of time alone please? Grab a shower or something?" The tone of Blaine's voice wash't as biting as it had been with Santana, but Kurt was reminded of being scolded by a teacher or told by a parent that he was too young to be involved in a conversation. He flinched slightly at the way Blaine was treating him but nodded and headed upstairs to the shower.

"Kurt," Blaine said, stopping him once he reached the landing of the stairs despite the fact that he knew Santana was watching his every move. He walked toward him and kissed his cheek gently as he whispered in his ear, "I'm sorry. It'll be okay." Kurt smiled at him and turned to begin ascending the stairs; silent tears rolled down his face the entire way up.

* * *

"Alright, what the _hell _was that? Lovey-dovey cheek nuzzling? And he knew where the shower was without you needing to tell him anything? He's been here before hasn't he?" Blaine remained quiet, bracing himself for what he knew was coming. She'd already figured it out. He'd just have to find a way around it. "Answer me, hobbit. I know there are things you're not telling me. Is this why you've been ignoring my phone calls for the past couple of weeks? Has Lady Hummel been occupying all of your free time?"

"STOP CALLING HIM THAT," Blaine screamed at her. Santana jumped and stared at Blaine in utter disbelief. She wasn't used to a Blaine this hostile. To be quite honest, she couldn't remember ever seeing Blaine that angry.

"Oh, _I'm sorry. _I didn't realize that you had an emotional connection to someone that, until five minutes ago, I didn't even know you knew existed. Is my nickname for Kurt something that bothers you? Why is that, Blainey? Why does my calling Kurt Lady Hummel annoy you to such a degree that you're screaming in my face about it?" Santana was really pressing her luck. If she wasn't a girl, Blaine would have hauled off and punched her square in the face.

"Because you're being a rude bitch and it's disgusting," Blaine said nastily. "You're my cousin, Santana. Until five minutes ago you were my _favorite cousin. _Hell, you were one of my best fucking friends. You respect me for being gay, don't you? Or is that all just an act? Are you only nice to me because you pity me? Because you know my parents couldn't give a flying fuck whether or not I'm alive? Because you know they wished I'd be dead rather than gay?" Blaine could feel his entire body shaking with the adrenaline and rage pulsating through him as rapidly as lightning. He stared pointedly at Santana and didn't react at all to the fact that she had taken a step back and stared at him with a mixture of shock and horror on her face.

"_WHAT did you just say?" _she asked, staring at Blaine with her hands now raised in the air as she shook her head vehemently from side to side as if trying to shake out the words she'd just heard. "Did you seriously just ask me that question? Do I _pity _you?!" She spat the words out as if she had been stung. "Of course I don't fucking pity you, Blaine. Of course I respect who you are. Gay or straight, hobbit or giant, gel-helmet or Einstein-hair-head. Don't you dare _ever _ask me that question again. You know how much I love you and you being gay doesn't mean shit as far as I'm concerned. You _know _that."

"Yeah, well, right now you're doing a really shitty job of showing me how much you love me. Not to mention how fucking terribly you treat Kurt. How dare you call him derogatory names like that in front of me. Don't you get that people could be saying the same shit about me behind my back? How could you possibly treat him that way when you know what I've been through- when you claim to love me so much despite my being gay? It's rude, Tana. I know you can be a bitch when you want to, but what the fuck has Kurt _ever _done to you to make you treat him that way? You should be ashamed of yourself."

"Alright, fine. You're right," she shrugged, nodding at Blaine in assent after mulling over his words, "I'll stop calling Kurt that and I'll start being nicer to him. But would you care to explain to me, what the actual _fuck _is going on with you two? I promise I will keep my lips zipped and I won't make rude comments. But I _know _something is going on and I want details like, yesterday or else I will go _all _Lima Heights." She placed her hands on her hips and stared fiercely at Blaine, waiting for him to start talking.

Blaine exhaled deeply and walked over to the couch to sit down. He patted the seat next to him, motioning for Santana to sit there. She rolled her eyes at him and said, "Yeah, right. Like I'd ever sit on that couch again after I just walked in on you two fucking on it. Let's go in the kitchen, you could probably use something to drink anyway. And find your damn shirt. I don't feel like staring at your baby nipples for the rest of the night."

"Fine, lead the way," Blaine said, irritated, searching around for his shirt and pulling it over his head. "And I do not have baby nipples," he said quietly to himself as he walked to the kitchen to meet her.

* * *

"… and we've been keeping it a secret because we knew that if the Warblers or the New Directions found out that we'd both be in deep shit and would probably be thrown out." Blaine had told Santana everything about how he and Kurt had gotten together, neglecting, of course, sexual details. He'd told her about leaving Sebastian's party and driving around aimlessly before finding the Lima Bean. He'd told her he'd met Kurt and they'd exchanged numbers and then decided to finally meet for coffee. He'd told her that they had figured out they were on opposing ends of the glee club spectrum but that they hadn't wanted to say goodbye, so they decided to just keep it a secret. Santana had not said a single word, but listened intently to every detail of the story as Blaine told it.

"It hasn't been easy. We have to make sure that we're not out in public close to home too often because if we run into someone we could be in trouble. And it's been getting harder with ridiculous glee club rehearsal schedules. I was at Sectionals tonight because I wanted to see him perform. I wanted to be there not as a Warbler checking out my competition, but as a guy who wanted to see his boyfriend. I wanted to be front row and center and I wanted to be able to scream and clap and cheer for the person that I care about. I _hate _that we have to keep everything so tightly under wraps. I hate that everything is one big fucking secret. He's the best thing that's ever happened to me and I have to pretend I don't even know him when we see each other in public. It's sick, I know it is. But what am I supposed to do? I can't lose the Warblers. Those guys have been everything to me from day one. And he doesn't want to give up you guys either. It's all just such a mess.

"But you have to understand, Tana," Blaine said gently, pleadingly, "this is not some fling. I _really _care about him. You know how I was with Jesse. You know everything that happened. You know what it did to me afterward and what a terrible disaster I was- I have been since. It's different with Kurt. I used to feel like Jesse was the only person in the world that could make me feel home and safe and completely loved, but then I met Kurt and my view of everything changed. With Kurt I feel whole. I feel like I can be who I am and not have to apologize to anyone for it. I feel infinite. I can't remember a time when I was ever this happy and this loved." He shrugged helplessly, hoping Santana would understand. He needed her to understand. If she blabbed about this, they'd be done for.

He watched uneasily as Santana contemplated for a moment. Then she did something he didn't expect, she reached into her pocket and pulled out his cellphone, laying it on the table in front of him. He stared at her dumbfounded. Why did she have his phone?

"You dropped this in the booth when you left tonight. Curiosity got the better of me, and I'm sorry, but I did some snooping. You should really put a password on your lock screen," she said shrugging as if to say it wasn't her fault that she went through his phone. "I didn't go through much, I didn't wanna be _that _much of an asshole. Although now, thinking about it, if I would have read through some of your texts it wouldn't really have been a surprise when I walked in on you and Kurt screwing on the sofa. Regardless, point is, you hadn't been answering my phone calls and I wanted to know why. I knew something was up and I thought your phone would probably be a clue as to what. So I went through your call history and when I saw a couple of calls from Kurt I knew something was going on, but I didn't really know what. Like I said, I didn't read the texts. I'm a nice person. (Blaine rolled his eyes)

"But then I saw something else, something recent that really bothered me- more than the fact that you were probably rendezvousing with Kurt behind the scenes." She picked up the phone, slid open to the home screen and went to the call history, then to recent voicemails. There was only one saved, from a month ago, from Jesse. She pressed play and Blaine cringed as Jesse's voice rang out into the quiet confines of the kitchen. He reached over, snatched up the phone and pressed the stop button. He locked his phone and put it in his pocket and when he looked back up, Santana was staring at him expectantly.

"Explain. Now," she said. There was nothing nice about it and Blaine knew why; Santana hated Jesse for what he had done to him. He didn't blame her, but he didn't want to be doing this right now, especially not with Kurt upstairs.

"It was nothing. Trust me. He called and cried about how much he missed me and loved me, but it's over. It's done. He knows he needs to leave me alone." Blaine knew he answered too quickly and that it would never be enough for her.

"Well clearly it wasn't nothing because it's been a month and this voicemail is still here. Please tell me that was an oversight, Blaine. Please tell me you didn't keep it intentionally and listen to it or whatever the fuck else you do to get all sappy and emotional about him. That kid is a little fucking prick. You _know _how I feel about him, how I feel about what he did to you. He was living on nothing more than a wish and a fucking _prayer _that I didn't grab him by his obnoxious curls and wave him around until that stupid fucking grin was permanently wiped off his face. I didn't do it because I knew it would probably hurt you more than it would hurt him, but that fucking boy had it coming to him and you know it. So please just-"

"TANA! Relax. Jeeze. I _promise you. _I did not save that voicemail purposely. Honestly, until right now I didn't even remember I had it on there. The day I got it, I called him right afterward and we fought, well, I fought, he listened while I screamed at him, and then we talked and it's over. It is. It's done. He's there and I'm here and nothing will ever happen. I didn't delete it because I didn't even think about it. Honestly," Blaine said as reassuringly as possible.

"See, there's one thing about that statement that just does _not_ sit well with me. "He's there and I'm here and nothing will happen". But what if he _wasn't _there, Blaine? What if he was here and you were here? Then what? I can tell you really care about Kurt, and I want more than anyone for you to be done with Jesse Shit James, but it makes me nervous that you're just, well, not." She paused and then took Blaine's hand in hers, taking him slightly by surprise. He stared at her and she spoke again. "Kurt and I may not be besties, I may not treat him as well as I should and I might have been a real bitch to him for no reason at all, but as much as I hate to admit this, I really like that kid. He's sweet, witty, porcelain gorgeous, and even though I make fun of his voice, he's got some talent and I know it. I approve of the two of you- more than that even, I _like _him for you. If I could pick someone that I would want for you to be with, someone who I knew would treat you right and love you and make you happy, it would probably be Kurt. Well, under different circumstances anyway. Bottom line is, Kurt is a _good thing._He's good for you and I think that, despite this glee shit, you two could make things work. I don't want that to be ruined. I don't want either of you to be hurt because of that little fucking dickwad that won't leave the past in the past.

I know you better than anyone, except for maybe Puck, and he and I have discussed this subject at length, believe that. I know how you hold onto things. I know that there's a part of you that thinks you'll love him forever, even though you might eventually love Kurt. I know there's a part of you, and a big part, that misses him still and wishes things could have been different. And I know you say that it's done and it's over and you know you have to leave each other alone, but I'm worried that you're never going to let go of this asshole and that he's gonna ruin every good thing you may ever have. It's obvious how much you care about Kurt. I don't want that little shit to ever wind up coming between that. I want you to be happy, Blaine. After all of the fucked up shit your parents have put you through, and Coop leaving, and then Jesse and all that shit too, it's too much for someone to take. And you're such a goddamn good person and you don't deserve any of it. So I need you to look me in the eyes right now and swear to me that you are over Jesse and that things between you are completely done. If you can do that, then I will leave this house and keep my big, bitchy mouth shut about you and Kurt."

Santana's eyes bore into Blaine and waited for him to respond. He stared right back into her eyes and spoke. "I swear to you that I am over Jesse and that things between us are done. I'm with Kurt, I care about _Kurt. _Jesse knows this and he knows he has to leave the past behind so that we can both move on and be happy. Everything you just said we discussed together on the phone that day. Jesse and I were in the past. Did I love him? More than anything. Do I miss him? Almost every single day. Am I still waiting for him to swoop back into my life and whisk me away so that we can live happily ever after? No. I'm not. I have Kurt now. Kurt is who makes me happy. Kurt is who I care about. Kurt is who I'm falling in love with more and more every minute. Okay? Is that a good enough answer for you? Can you accept that and keep your mouth shut about us so that I can continue to be happy with the boy I care about? _Please?" _

"Wait a second- you _love _him? You're falling in love with him?" Santana asked, taken aback by Blaine's declaration.

"Yes, I am. I mean, we haven't said it formally yet, but if you're asking me to bear my soul here and convince you that Jesse is not an issue anymore, then I have to tell you everything now don't I? I care about Kurt _very _much, and I know he feels the same about me. We haven't said the 'I love yous' just yet, there's no need to be premature about it, I don't want to rush into anything, but I know it. I know I love him and I know, deep down, that he loves me. I love him more than I have ever loved anyone before, including Jesse. He's, just, everything. Everything," Blaine said, and he couldn't resist smiling widely to himself. He felt himself turning pink. This was Santana he was talking to, after all, she didn't understand love the way he did. He looked away, embarrassed.

"Hey," she said, her soft tone once again taking him by surprise. He turned to face her again. "I'm so happy for you, Blainers. I know you're all about that romantic love shit, and I'm glad that you found someone to be that way with. And I know Kurt and I know he isn't gonna hurt you. I promise I will keep my mouth shut. But you promise me something too, okay?"

Blaine looked at her, eyebrow raised, wondering what she wanted from him. "Yeah?"

"You tell that boy you love him and don't wait until it's too late."

Blaine smiled, stood up, and walked around the table to where she was sitting. Now it was her turn to stare imploringly at him. He grabbed her tightly in a hug and she hugged him right back. When he pulled away he said, "I promise. Thank you, Tana. I really love you, you know that?"

"Yeah, well, of course you love me, everyone loves me." Blaine rolled his eyes once more and they both burst out laughing together.

* * *

Kurt had returned downstairs after his shower just in time to overhear Santana asking Blaine about if Jesse were to be back in Ohio. He had to admit, he felt slightly ashamed to be listening in to something that might be very private, but he wanted to know the same thing she did. If Jesse were here and not in California, if they were both in the same place again, what would Blaine do? He bit his nails down to his skin as he listened intently and anxiously to the remainder of the conversation.

He found himself zoning in and out of the conversation, only hearing it in bits and pieces because he was thinking through so many different 'what if' scenarios. He didn't know how Blaine felt about Jesse right now. Sure, they'd spoken about him once before and Blaine had told Kurt how deeply he'd felt for Jesse when they were together, but Blaine had also told Kurt that he cared for Kurt even more than Jesse. Was that a lie? Did he still have feelings for his ex? Was he still in love with him?

"… is who I care about. Kurt is who I'm falling in love with more and more every minute. Okay? Is that a good enough answer for you? Can you accept that and keep your mouth shut about us so that I can continue to be happy with the boy that I care about? _Please?" _

Kurt froze, paralyzed, rooted to his spot. He could hear Blaine's words bouncing through his brain as if scrambled. _Who I'm falling in love with more and more every minute. _Had he just heard correctly? Did Blaine just tell Santana that he was in love with Kurt? He couldn't have. He must have misheard.

Straining to hear more, for a hope of confirmation, he listened carefully. "…but I know it. I know I love him and I know, deep down, that he loves me. I love him more than I have ever loved anyone before, including Jesse. He's, just, everything. Everything." There was a pause and Kurt could swear his heart was beating so loudly that he could actually hear it. Blaine loved him. _Blaine loved him._ He hadn't misheard; it wasn't a mistake. He had said it more than once. Blaine loved Kurt. He loved him. Any doubts Kurt had seconds before about Blaine's true feelings for him evaporated instantly.

_Blaine loves me,_ he thought to himself, beaming from ear to ear as tears glistened in his eyes and his heart beat wildly in his chest. The adrenaline coursing through him was like nothing he'd ever experienced before. He was jumping up and down on the balls of his feet in celebration, trying to be as silent as possible so as not to be caught. _He loves me. He really loves me._

Kurt was so ecstatic that he thought if he truly wanted, he could fly.


	15. Chapter 15

A/N: Sorry for the absence, guys. I've been applying to grad schools and it's been hectic, plus, I wasn't exactly sure where I wanted to take this next. I had a couple of ideas, but I finally decided and now it's time to move on. Additionally, in the beginning I mentioned there might be Furt brother plot line in here along the way, and I had every intention of doing so, but now that Cory's passed I'm having trouble writing it so it looks like that won't be happening after all. I also don't want to make anyone who was a big Cory fan sad with loveydovey Furt scenes. It's too heartbreaking. So that's that. I hope you're all okay with this. I promise the story won't suffer from it.

So anyways, Here we goooooo!

* * *

It was a while before Santana left that night. It was _beyond _surreal to Kurt that he spent the night with Santana Lopez, of all people. To his surprise, though, she was actually pleasant enough to be around. The two of them (and Blaine) had spent hours just talking and laughing. Sometimes the conversation would drift back to Kurt and Blaine being in a relationship (Santana, like Kurt, couldn't really get over the idea or the coincidence of it all) but most of the time the conversation remained neutral. Kurt realized he actually didn't know anything about her, but by the time she left that evening he was certain he knew more about her than most of the other people with him in glee club. He never thought she'd open up to him or tell him things about herself because she's always so aloof and cold to other people, but he found he was glad when she did so. She may tried to hide it, but Kurt has always known her permanent bitchface is really just an act to not have to get too close to people and wind up hurt in the end. Needless to say, after a couple of hours together the two wound up with a mutual respect for one another that surely hadn't existed before and that made Blaine one happy little boy.

1 am found the two boys in Blaine's bed, snuggled as close together as possible, arms and legs intertwined and chests sealed together. Kurt couldn't help but hear Blaine's words over and over in his head. He couldn't help but have constant butterflies as he thought about the fact that the boy in his arms _loved him._ Kurt had known for a long time that he loved Blaine, and he knew to a certain extent that Blaine shared his feelings, but to hear it said out loud was something different altogether. There was no real way to explain why Blaine saying the words aloud had made such a drastic change, but it had. To Kurt, things were different now. Things were more real somehow. The situation that they were in, their relationship together, everything seemed to have moved into an entirely new universe. It was the most amazing feeling Kurt had ever experienced.

He wanted to bring it up to Blaine, he wanted to talk to him about it and be able to tell him that he loved him too, but he wasn't exactly sure how to bring it up. He couldn't exactly say "Oh, by the way, I was listening to your conversation with Santana and I know you're in love with me." Could he? There seemed no other way to broach the situation, and he really did want to talk with Blaine about it, so what could he do? He could always just casually say he loved Blaine first and then wait for Blaine's response. But they weren't even talking right now, so how could he just say it out of nowhere? That would seem fishy. Blurting out that he loved Blaine wouldn't exactly be romantic either.

As he settled himself deeper into Blaine's chest he decided he'd just go for it. He pulled their intertwined hands into his chest and rested his chin on Blaine's chest so that he could look up at him. The movement made Blaine look down at Kurt and smile, all teeth and pure love and joy that made Kurt's heart flip. Kurt smiled back and then leaned up for a small kiss. He could never get enough of those gentle kisses. They were so _Blaine_. Kurt had quite a few relationships before this, and, sure, the guys he was with cared for him, but they never cherished him the way Blaine did. Kurt could tell just from the way Blaine kissed him that he was pouring all of his love into every single brush of their lips. It was different than anyone else ever did and it made him feel like he was special. He knew he'd never tire of it.

When he pulled away he stared into those beautiful hazel-green orbs and sighed deeply, soaking in Blaine's pure beauty. "So I wanted to talk to you about something," he said, gauging whether or not Blaine was awake enough to be having this conversation. He didn't really want to put it off, but if Blaine was sleeping through it that would surely be of no use to him.

Blaine leaned slightly backward to get a better look at him, eyes going wider and eyebrows raising slightly. "Okay, talk to me about something."

Kurt diverted his eyes from Blaine's and moved to look at his chest. He began to trace imaginary patterns there, thinking, trying to figure out how to bring it up now that he knew he had Blaine's full attention. "Well, okay… I don't really know how to bring this up, I don't want you to be upset with me- it really wasn't intentional, it's just that- well, I…"

He trailed off nervously and Blaine reached down to cup his chin and raise his face to meet his eyes again. He leaned down, kissed him softly once more and then smiled. _Blaine kiss. _"I will not be upset with you. Just say whatever you want to. If it's about tonight and Santana and everything-"

"No, no, it's not about Santana," Kurt said, cutting him off. "Well, it has something to do with Santana, but not the way you're thinking. I actually really did enjoy her company and I'm glad that we go to know each other better. She isn't the completely manipulative bitch I always had her pegged for. I think she and I will get along just fine from now on. But that's got nothing to do with what I wanted to talk to you about."

Kurt paused and Blaine stared down at him expectantly. "Well, what was it then? Just say it. Pleeeeeeeeaaaase?" Blaine pouted, his lower lip coming up and making him resemble the cutest puppy Kurt had ever laid eyes on. He couldn't suppress a giggle.

"Okay, fine. Well, I finished my shower and got dressed in a reasonably quick time because I don't have any of my hair or facial products to get cleaned up with. So within about 15 minutes I had finished showering and getting dressed and I made my way back downstairs hoping to find that Santana would be gone by then. But, well, she wasn't." Kurt paused again and Blaine raised an eyebrow at him. "I was coming into the kitchen to find you, I heard the two of you talking and I wanted to ask whether or not you wanted me to go this way you could have some time with her. But then I kinda heard her say something about Jesse, your ex, and it piqued my interest. So I stopped myself from coming in and waited where you wouldn't see me so I could listen. It was wrong, I know, and I'm sorry, but she was asking about whether or not you'd be with Jesse if he were back here in Ohio, and I was curious. The last time we spoke about him you told me you felt more strongly for me than you ever had for him, but it's been a while since then and I wasn't sure if things had changed…"

Blaine frowned at him but he continued speaking before Blaine could interrupt. "I don't doubt that you care about me, but I walked into a conversation that I had missed half of, and I wasn't sure what lead to her bringing up Jesse in the first place. I didn't even know if maybe you had brought him up instead. I'm sorry I listened in, but I just had to hear what you said about him. The last thing I ever want to do is be with someone who is in love with someone else. And I don't want to keep you from being with someone else if that's what you want. Despite how much I care about you, I'd never want to make you stay with me if it wasn't what you wanted."

This time, before Kurt could continue, Blaine stopped him. When he spoke, his voice was more serious than Kurt had ever heard it. "I hope that, since you were listening, you know that isn't true. Not in the slightest bit. I do _not _want to be with Jesse. I do _not _still love Jesse. And I _do _want to be with you. Santana brought him up because she found my phone, I dropped it accidentally at Breadstixx and she picked it up and brought it back here for me, and went snooping. She found a really old voicemail that he left me and assumed that I was harboring old feelings and dwelling on my past with him. Which, please let me clarify, _I am most definitely not. _I told her that he called and I listened to the voicemail, and since I called him right back I forgot to delete it. I had even completely forgotten that it was there until she brought it up. I didn't tell you about the call because it was just Jesse being Jesse and crying about losing me for the millionth time. He knows now that he can't just pull on his imaginary rope and expect me to be tied in it. We've been over for a _really long time _and I told him he had to stop this and move on. It wasn't relevant and I didn't want to upset you. We said our goodbyes and things are over, they have been for a while. Santana was just concerned. She was there through the Jesse days and knew how badly he messed me up. She didn't want that to be happening again. But I need you to understand-"

"I do understand," Kurt interrupted, reaching to brush his hand over Blaine's cheek reassuringly and resting it there. "I didn't bring this up because I was doubting your feelings for me, though I am glad you told me about the Jesse phone call now. I brought it up because of what you said after you discussed Jesse. I, kinda, well, overheard you telling Santana how you really felt about me."

Blaine's cheeks grew slightly pink though he said nothing. Kurt could feel the heat transfer from his cheek to his hand. "I heard you tell Santana that you were, and I quote, falling in love with me more and more every minute, and that you loved me more than you loved anyone else, Jesse included. That's why I'm not worried about Jesse or a voicemail or phone call. I know you love me and I know you're true. I've never felt more loved by anyone in my life, except for maybe my mom and dad, until I met you. I can feel it when you kiss me, I can see it when you look at me, I can hear it every time you breathe out my name because your heart is too heavy to really say it. It's in every part of you and I know it more than I know anything in my life. So Jesse can call you as many times as he wants, but for as long as you kiss me and look at me that way, I'm never saying goodbye to you. And I want you to know something too, if it wasn't already painfully obvious. I love you too. I love you more than my heart has ever known possible to love someone else and I will love you forever."

Blaine felt his heart pound in his throat and felt the same euphoria that Kurt had felt earlier. "You love me too? You really love me too?", he said, his voice cracking. It wasn't a rhetorical question and Kurt felt his heart tug uncomfortably. How many times had this beautiful boy in front of him felt unloved by someone? Far too many for his liking.

"I really love you. You love me?" Kurt asked, teasing in a cute little baby voice.

Blaine giggled. "Yeah, I love you," he breathed out. He leaned in to kiss Kurt once more, melting into the boy in front of him and only breaking the kiss every few seconds to keep saying "I love you, I love you, I love you."

* * *

After the Warblers' (inevitable) victory at Sectionals the following weekend, April brought a higher level of stress than February and March. With Regionals right around the corner the two glee clubs were rehearsing around the clock. The Warblers and New Directions were the only two groups that mattered at Regionals, despite the presence of the third group, Oral Intensity. This was the time of year when the rivalry was in full fire. Neither could let the other win. For the past two years, the New Directions had gone on to Nationals. This year, the Warblers were determined to take back the trophy; the New Directions planned to make sure it stayed their's for another year.

After a particularly exhausting Friday night practice, and a brutally long week, Blaine and Puck found themselves leaving school and going back to Puck's house for the night. Blaine's parents would actually be home for once and he didn't feel like dealing with them when he was so exhausted and stressed out. Plus, he hadn't seen Puck outside of school and rehearsal for a while. He had been spending every available second with Kurt, desperate to make sure that they didn't wind up distanced from each other because of stupid glee rehearsals taking over their lives. He loved being around Kurt, and wanted to spend as much time as possible with him, but he had to admit that he definitely missed his best friend.

They were at their lockers, grabbing the last of their things for the weekend before leaving, when Puck turned to him. "So, tell me, what the hell's been going on it your tiny life lately? Santana and I had an interesting little chat a little while back," Puck said, staring at Blaine who could feel the bile rising in his throat at the thought of Santana outing him to Puck, or anyone else for that matter. "She said she'd spoken to you about it and that she thinks you're _actually _over St. James. She told me about the voicemail and phone call fiasco and then that you guys talked and you seemed to have been moving on, for real this time. Is this true? Are you finally done with that shit-for-brains weasel?"

Blaine rolled his eyes and nudged Puck with his shoulder, making him hit into his locker. "Yeah, I'm finally done with _Jesse. _I've been done with him for a while._" _

Puck smiled, deep satisfaction etched in the lines of his face. "Good shit, dude. Does this have anything to do with _Kurtiepants?" _Puck asked, batting his eyelashes in Blaine's direction and smiling the creepiest smile Blaine had ever seen. He would have laughed if he wasn't so panicked. He had forgotten that Puck knew about Kurt. Sure, he'd told Puck about Kurt, but that was before he knew that Kurt was in the New Directions and they'd decided they had to keep their relationship a secret. It was then that Blaine realized they _really _hadn't spent much time together lately. He'd been serious with Kurt for months now and he and Puck hadn't discussed it since before their first date. He knew Puck probably didn't mind, might not even have noticed, but he couldn't help but feel guilty. He wasn't intentionally avoiding Puck as he had Santana, it just, well, happened. He looked over at Puck and smiled guiltily. If Santana knew, Puck could know. Puck had been his best friend forever; he trusted Puck with everything and he knew that Puck would always be there to support him and keep any and all secrets that he needed him to. It was time to fess up and tell the truth. If anyone was gonna be there for him through this shitshow, it was Puck.

"Actually, it does," Blaine heaved a deep sigh and braced himself. _Moment of truth. _"There's some things that I gotta talk to you about."

The change in tone of the conversation, from teasing to more serious, took Puck by surprise and made defensive-daddy-Puckerman come out to play. "What's up, my dude? Everything alright? He didn't hurt you, did he? Did he pull a St. James on you? Did he fuck you over? Because I _will _kill him for you, know that. I will do what I wanted so badly to do with Jesse just so long as you give me the word. Just say it. Say go and I'm yours and I'm out. I'll-"

"PUCK. Relax. It's nothing like that. Kurt didn't hurt me, he hasn't treated me badly in any way. It's actually the opposite. We've been together all this time, since that first day you encouraged me to get coffee with him, remember?" Puck smiled a smug, satisfied smile once more. He hadn't forgotten. He fully intended on taking every bit of the glory that came with the fact that _he'd _been the one who'd led to Blaine's happiness. There were few things he wanted more than for his best friend to be happy, and if he was the one who had a heavy hand in making that happen, he would be more than obliged to take the credit for it. Blaine smiled and shook his head. "So anyway, we've been together ever since and…"

Blaine went on and on, telling Puck the same story he'd told Santana. How Kurt was a member of the New Directions. How they'd had to keep their relationship a secret for the good of each other's status in their glee clubs. How they wanted to be with each other but didn't want to sacrifice their positions in glee. On and on he went, not leaving out anything and making sure that he was emphatic about how necessary it was that their relationship be kept a secret. He trusted Puck and he knew he could depend on him, but he also knew that Puck most definitely wasn't the brightest crayon in the box. If Blaine didn't lay it out for him clearly enough, he might not realize how important it was that he keep his mouth shut.

"Wow," was all Puck could manage at the end of Blaine's tale. He let out a long whistle, eyes wide, shaking his head back and forth and then laughing. "Wow. My little baby Blaine is all grown up and in secret relationships. _Fraternizing with the enemy_ of all things. Like a modern day Egg's Benedict. Well it certainly wasn't anything I ever expected from you, buddy. I like to think that after all of these years a part of me has rubbed off on you. I'd like to think that your current situation is as successful as it is because I am your best friend." He stuck out his chest proudly and pointed his index finger at it, tapping lightly. "All me."

"Oh would you give it up. You're such an asshole," Blaine said, laughing as well now. He knew he could trust Puck to not flip out. Despite Warbler Law, Puck was his best friend first and foremost. "Anyway. You and Santana are now the only two people who know. She found out by accident, and I elected to tell you the truth because I trust you and you're my best friend. But this is like, heart attack serious. _No one _can know about this. _No one. _If Santana hadn't found out, I'm not sure I would've even told you, and I tell you everything. But I know you and I know you don't give a shit about the Warblers/New Directions rivalry. I trust you." Blaine looked seriously at Puck, waiting for reassurance that he was wise to trust him. But when Puck looked back at Blaine, there was nothing serious about it. In fact, he looked as though he were about to burst out laughing. "What on _earth _is funny?"

"How'd Tana find out 'accidentally'?" he asked, making air-quotes and still fighting back laughter.

Blaine felt the blush creeping up his neck and into his face. _Oh shit._ _Busted. _"What?"

"I asked how Tana happened to find out by accident. How do you find out about a total secret that absolutely no one can know about _by accident_?" His face was growing smugger by the second. He knew where this was going. He didn't even need Blaine to say it.

"Shecaughtushavingsex," Blaine blurt whispered, looking down, suddenly captivated by his shoes. He leaned harder against his locker wishing that maybe he'd eventually just fall through and not have to look at Puck's face anymore.

"HA!" Puck screamed, bursting out with the laughter that he had been containing. "Oh my GOD, _I knew it! _Oh, FUCK, Anderson. You get it, bro. You get it. I couldn't be fucking prouder of you right now if you were my own son. Doing the nasty with the boyfiee and getting _caught! _This is primetime Puckerman! I don't even know who you are right now. Secret relationships. Fucking strangers in bathrooms. Sex with the boy and getting caught with your ass in the air. _Shit,_ Blaine. _Shit._"

"Well, if you wanna get technical, he had _his _ass in the air," Blaine said sassily, feeling defensive. Even though he knew Puck was commending him and was probably more proud of him than he'd ever been before, he couldn't help but feel like he needed to defend himself; to defend Kurt. To his horror, Puck's mouth dropped wide enough that a car could have driven right in. His eyes were so wide it was cartoonish.

"_Blaine! _You're a _bottom?! _Holy shit. I would have never pegged you to be the donut, but JESUS. I can't even talk to you right now. I don't know anything about you anymore." Puck faked a sob and hung his head. Blaine just stared, confused.

"A _donut?"_

"Yeah, like, you're the donut, you've got the hole in the center. His dick is the donut hole and BULLSEYE! Everything fits nice and pretty. And I bet tasty too." He was screaming again and Blaine was sure he was as red as a tomato. He had literally never heard that analogy before, but with Puck anything was possible. He was almost certain he'd come up with that one himself. Donut, indeed.

"Brilliant, Puck, brilliant," Blaine said sarcastically. "But can you please stop fucking screaming about my sex life on the top of your goddamn lungs? I know you're proud and all that, but please fucking relax." He was practically growling at this point, teeth clenched.

Puck just smiled over at Blaine, teasing again. "Yeah, yeah."

"So are we ready to go now or what? I'm starving. We can call for pizza on the way to your house and hopefully we won't have to wait long."

Puck grabbed his bag from his locker, twisted the lock shut and started walking for the door. "Yup, let's go. Pizza it is. And Blaine," he said, slapping the smaller boy's shoulder and holding on as they walked, "just know, seriously now, brother to brother, I've got your back and I'll keep your secret. I don't give a shit about glee club feuds. That's the corniest shit ever and I couldn't care less about it actually. If I met a hott chick from New Directions I might hit it too and I wouldn't give a damn. You're my best friend and if this kid makes you happy, which I'm sure he does or you wouldn't have stayed around this long, then I'm good with it, no matter what school he goes to and what glee club he's in. That's all bullshit anyway. You being happy is numero uno to me, and you know it. Your secret's safe with me."

Blaine felt a surge of appreciation for his best friend. He really loved Puck and was so glad that, even though they were total opposites about most things, he always had Puck in his corner. "Thanks, bud. You couldn't even begin to understand how much that means to me or how much your friendship means to me. I don't feel like getting all sappy right now, and I'm too tired even if I wanted to, but you know I love you, buddy. Thanks for always being there."

Puck squeezed his shoulder tighter before letting go. Blaine knew it was his way of sharing the sentiment without having to put it into words. "So paint a picture for me. What was actually happening when Santana walked in on you two. Don't hold out on me now!"

Blaine rolled his eyes and groaned, pushing his way through the front doors and out into the breezy April air.

* * *

As the door slammed closed behind Blaine and Puck, a lone figure walked out from the bathroom and followed close behind. Watching as the two boys got into Puck's car and drove off, he leaned against the front doors and smiled, letting out a laugh and clapping his hands together; he was clearly ecstatic and alive with great satisfaction. He then spoke aloud to himself in a serious voice that didn't at all match the joy that his body language was portraying. It was almost an angry growl when he said, "Gotcha, Blainers."


	16. Chapter 16

A/N: This is a pretty long chapter. It wound up much longer than I originally intended and some things will just have to wait for the next chapter. For the second section of this, I decided to write it from a neutral POV (neither Blaine's nor Kurt's, more of an onlooker/audience member). I hope it doesn't seem confusing, I know sometimes when POVs shift things get weird, but I just started writing it that way and I preferred it. It eventually shifts back to Blaine's POV in the third section, but yeah. You'll see. Bear with me.

So without further ado, here we go! Prepare yourselves for what's to come! Take that however you'd like. ;) Enjoy!

* * *

"So anyway, I just wanted to say that regardless of what happens today, I still love you and I hope you'll still love me too. I know what it does to you when I win," Blaine could hear the teasing in Kurt's voice through the phone, could see the smile on his face and the slight wink of his eye. He couldn't help but laugh. Despite the fact that he did not want to lose Regionals, he couldn't be mad at Kurt if the New Directions took off with the trophy again.

"Oh, we'll just see about that Mr. Hummel. We'll see just how cocky you are after we win."

"No, no, no, Mr. Anderson, I am _never _cocky, always confident. You should try and learn the difference someday. I'd be more than happy to teach you basic differences between words in the English language," Kurt said, the smile evident in his voice.

"Mhm, sure. You'll see. But I promise that if you do happen to win, though it isn't going to happen, I will be proud of you and I will still love you." Blaine paused, thinking. The school year was almost over. They'd gotten through Sectionals and months of secrecy. All they had to do was get through this one last day and then only one of them would have the stress of glee club left. After today, only one would be moving on to Nationals, and the tensions wouldn't be as high. If the Warblers won, Blaine might even be able to convince them that the rivalry was stupid and try and come out (ironically) to them about he and Kurt. He had thought about it so many times, dreamed up multiple different scenarios in which the Warblers accepted his relationship with Kurt and were happy for him. Then again, there were equally as many times when he imagined the Warblers being so furious with him that they kicked him out of the group permanently and refused to be his friend anymore.

Blaine sighed heavily and Kurt could hear it through the phone. He said exactly what Blaine was thinking. "It's almost over. Don't stress it now. We're at the finish line!" Blaine smiled sadly at Kurt's words and his optimistic tone. He knew it was almost over, but he wished that it didn't have to be this way. As he and Kurt grew closer, keeping their relationship a secret grew harder. All he wanted was to tell his friends about Kurt, to bring Kurt around, to be able to spend his time both with the guys and with Kurt and not have to worry about micromanaging his time with each. Kurt was the love of his life. He hated the idea of sacrificing the little time they had together on down times. But then, the Warblers were his best friends and next year was gonna be his senior year. Who knew when he'd get the chance to see any of them anymore after graduation. He didn't want to look back and have regret because he pushed his best friends away for his boyfriend. Though Kurt was definitely worth it, he wanted to be able to spend his final year with _both. _

He groaned, rubbing his hands over his face. "I know. I'm trying. I just wish it was easier, that's all."

"Yeah, me too. But let's not be sad about this today! Today is a good day. We're gonna be in the same place at the same time! That's a rarity these days. And then before you know it, it'll be over. Sure, one of us will still have glee to prepare for Nationals, but working around one schedule is much easier than working around two impossible schedules with no time for each other. It's gonna get better after today. The rivalry will flare up for today, especially today, and then for the next week or so until whoever loses accepts it and moves on, but then it'll be put to rest until next year's season. Today is a good day! Let's enjoy ourselves and be positive," Kurt said, knowing he sounded like a cheerleader but not really caring.

Blaine smiled. He could see Kurt's face so clearly right now, imagine what he looked like in his head; eager, anxious, hopeful, excited, with a slight frown because he hoped he was getting through to Blaine somehow. He chuckled quietly to himself. His boyfriend was _adorable. _"I just can't wait to see you," Blaine said, changing the subject. "I know you're gonna be amazing and I can't wait to hear you sing again. After the performance you gave at Sectionals, I can't even imagine what's coming now. I feel like I couldn't possibly love you more than I already do, but somehow by tonight I'm _sure_ I'll be singing a different tune."

Kurt blushed, the pink spreading rapidly up his neck into his cheeks. "I could say the same about you. I mean, your solos are breathtaking, Blaine. I feel like I can fly when I see you performing. Those Warblers were brilliant to put you on lead vocals, I'll give them that."

Blaine laughed, shaking his head. He looked over and checked the clock. It was already two o'clock and he needed to be at Dalton for three to get on the bus to the theatre where Regionals would be held. Sectionals was always hosted at a school, but Regionals and Nationals were like the Superbowl or the World Series- they were always hosted on neutral territory. Though Blaine didn't quite understand the idea of 'home field advantage' when it came to _singing competitions, _he'd grown quite accustomed to it by now. In fact, he rather enjoyed traveling to all the different theatres each year and seeing all the beautiful new places.

"Alright, well, I think I gotta go. I have to be up at school by three and I still haven't gotten dressed yet. I'm sitting in my towel."

"Oh, _really_. Just your towel? Nothing else?" Kurt asked suggestively. Blaine could feel his dick twitch with arousal beneath the terrycloth fabric.

"Yup, just a towel. Why? What're you gonna do about that? You're there. I'm here. It's a shame, really."

"Well, we could always just… pretend I'm there. Slowly unwrapping the towel from around your thin, toned waist. Letting it fall onto the bed around you as I kneel and place my hands on your thighs…." Blaine knew where this was going. He was already half-hard. He _really _didn't have the time, but he couldn't resist now, not when Kurt sounded so fucking gorgeous and was initiating phone sex. They hadn't had time for real sex in too long. He couldn't give this up. He'd just have to dress much quicker than usual.

"My hands would slowly work their way up your thighs, tracing circles around and around and around until I finally moved all the way to where I wanted to be. I'd take you fully in my hand, hard, but not squeezing, just enough to give you enough friction to make you feel good." Blaine responded by doing exactly what Kurt said he'd be doing. He reached down and undid his towel as quick as if lightning had struck him. He grabbed his dick firmly in his hands and began stroking, knowing that's what Kurt would be doing next. He let out a soft groan. _Oh god. _

"I'd stroke you so nice, baby- up down, up down, pressing my fingers over that bulging vein in the way that makes you completely lose yourself. I'd slide my fingers right over your head and wet them with your come and then it would start again- up down, up down. Slide over the head, pick up more of you and then I'd slide my fingers right into my mouth and I would suck them until they were bone dry and I could taste nothing but you. _OH you taste so good baby._" Kurt was moaning now too, and Blaine knew he was jerking himself off on the other end of the line. His cock throbbed in his own hand and he moved up and down harder, squeezing in a way that gave him enough friction to feel good, though still not as good as Kurt's hands would feel.

"Then, when you're good and hard and moaning and writhing beneath me, when you're just at the point before screaming my name and begging for more, I'd lean down and take you whole right into my mouth. Your head would be hitting the back of my throat and I would be swallowing around you, my throat closing tight over your red, hard, aching cock until the pleasure was coursing through your entire body. My tongue would be roving over you, pressing right up against that vein and licking up and down in its direction. _Oh- oh, GOD, _do you feel good, baby. You're so hard for me. When your hands reached into my hair to tug softly, my mouth would start to work even faster and then I'd reach my hands up and grab those beautiful balls, rolling them around in my hands and making you feel like you're completely losing control. My wet, warm mouth, enclosed around your dick, bringing you pleasure you can't stand, my hands cupping you in a way that makes your body paralyzed. You're a wreck and I love it. _Oh how I love it._"

Kurt was openly moaning now and Blaine couldn't stand it anymore. He worked himself faster and faster, knowing Kurt would soon make him come in his would-be scenario and needing to follow suit. He groaned and the sound rattled around inside his chest, making it come out like a deep growl before a high pitch keen fell from his lips. He was biting down so hard on his bottom lip that he was afraid he'd break the skin soon. But _god _it felt so good. And the way Kurt was _talking. _He couldn't even stand it. He was doing and feeling exactly what Kurt said.

"You're almost there, the pleasure is coursing through you and your mind is going fuzzy. It's building up behind your adorable little belly and you know if I keep doing what I'm doing it's only a matter of time until you finally find release. But I won't stop. No- _oh! _No I won't stop. My mouth loves having your cock inside of it, you taste _so good and oh god... _You'd tug still tighter at my hair until I pressed hard against that beautiful vein and squeezed you in my hand. Then, with one swift, final suck you'd come right down my throat. Your hot, gorgeous liquid flowing right down and filling me up. _Oh I can taste you_. And you'd be screaming my name. Screaming it so loud that the neighbors would hear, but I wouldn't move my mouth- I won't let you go until I've licked you clean, even if you get hard again."

Blaine was close, he could feel the familiar pull in his stomach. He pressed down hard against the vein, pulling forward and sending himself over the edge, screaming "_Oh GOD KURT! KURT! OH KURT! OH GOD KURT! OH GOD." _

Kurt was panting and moaning on the other end, soft whispers of "_Blaine, oh, mmmm, Blaine. Oh god, Blaine" _were passing through the line, making Blaine's body pulse even more with the electricity of his orgasm.

After both boys' orgasms, the line was silent as they tried to compose themselves and come down from their high. Blaine threw himself back on his bed, happy that he'd been wearing a towel or else he would have had to clean his sheets too. Using the towel, which was still damp and smelled delicious from his body wash, he cleaned himself off and then threw it to the floor, laying naked on his bed and staring up at the ceiling, his phone still held to his ear despite the fact that he was completely unfocused.

Several minutes later Blaine was back to normal and checked the clock again. It was close to 2:30 and he left himself no time to get ready. _But oh it was so very worth it._ "Kurt?" he asked, because the line was so silent Kurt might have hung up.

"Yeah, I'm still here. Just trying to ingrain that into my memory. The way you were screaming my name like that. My _god, _Blaine. It was so hott I couldn't even stand it. I came just from the sound of it. I barely needed my hand."

Blaine sat up and laughed. "Yeah, well, I didn't actually expect you to spring phone sex on me when I'm supposed to be at school in half an hour. Now I have no time to get ready and go. I'm probably gonna be late- the guys are gonna kill me. But _dear god, _if that wasn't worth being late, then I don't know what the fuck is. That was so hott! Remember before when I said I'd probably be saying I loved you even more than I already do by the end of the night? Well I was fucking right. _Jesus fuck. _You're incredible, you know that? You always continue to surprise me. I love you so much."

Kurt smiled and Blaine could hear the little crack of his lips through the phone, which made him smile too. "I love you too, Blaine. I won't keep you any longer though. It's bad enough you're gonna lose Regionals, I don't want you to be in trouble too." His voice was teasing as it had been in the beginning of the conversation and Blaine laughed out loud again.

"We'll just see about that, Kurt Hummel. Bring it on."

"Oh, honey. It's been brought."

Blaine laughed even louder as the line went dead.

* * *

By six pm the theatre was abuzz with excitement. Parents and friends of all of the glee clubs performing had gathered in the audience and were patiently waiting for opening statements from the emcee alerting them that the show was about to begin. The theme for this year's Regionals was, as indicated by the programs, "Memories". A subtext indicated that the songs chosen by each group could be sung in remembrance of an artist, or could, quite literally, have the word memory in its title.

Oral Intensity was up first. Being a primarily female group, they decided to do a tribute to Donna Summer; the boys in the group provided a beautifully contrasted sound during harmonies. They picked signature Donna hits ('On the Radio', 'MacArthur Park', and 'Last Dance') and had three powerful, belting females who made the audience roar with applause. They had done exceptionally well, all things considered, but the chatter between their performance and that of the New Directions, the buzz in the crowd, the way the audience came alive when the lights dimmed once more told a perfectly clear tale. Oral Intensity, despite their success, could never win. This night was all about the New Directions and the Warblers. Only one victor would reign supreme, and Oral Intensity would never triumph.

As the lights came back up on the stage, there were four people glowing under spotlights: a petite brunette girl, a tall, thin, gorgeous latina, a voluptuous, curvy black girl, and a pale, thin boy with perfect hair. The black girl opened her mouth and began singing 'How Will I Know' by Whitney Houston (they had clearly chosen to memorialize her), no music behind her- a bold move but one she handled with absolute ease. Her voice echoed all around the theatre, sending chills up and down the spines of nearly everyone in the audience. The song moved from her to the petite brunette, but no music began. Instead, the song remained a cappella, with the other members harmonizing. It was absolutely breathtaking and the audience was so silent that a pin dropping could have been disastrously loud. As the song picked up speed, in addition to harmonizing and singing backup, each member snapped their fingers in time with what would have been the music and the boy began lightly stomping his foot to provide a drumming sound. The arrangement was awe-inspiring.

The end of the song was met with hesitance, no one in the audience dare move or cheer or make any noise for fear they'd speak too soon. However, within seconds of realizing it was over, the audience was all on its feet, the sound thunderous. The four friends joined together center stage and took a bow before backing up and getting into place for the second song. Moments later they were joined by the rest of the group and the music began, this time playing 'I Wanna Dance With Somebody'. The girls and boys split into two groups on opposite ends of the stage- the tall bulky boy from Sectionals, with the flipped up brown hair, and the petite brown-haired girl who had just sung moved to the front of each of the groups. It was clear they would be singing lead while the rest of the group sang backup vocals.

The choreography began at once and each group took it in turns to dance two counts of eight at a time. Spotlights turned on and off the groups dancing accordingly (highlighting those dancing and leaving those not in the dark), so that it looked like an optical illusion of dancing, or a battle between the girls and the boys. They sang the verse in accordance with the choreography (the boy sang when the boys danced and the girl when the girls danced), though the two singing remained still as the group behind them danced. It was absolutely fascinating to watch, not to mention beautifully sung and harmonized. During the chorus, the group came together as a whole, everyone dancing and singing together. When the next verse started, the groups switched, leaving each group on the opposite side of the stage from where they started, and the pattern repeated. Once again, the audience was completely captivated. Since there was loud music being played as they sang and danced, no one hesitated to cheer along loudly this time. When the song came to an end, the audience cheered wildly as everyone exited the stage.

Seconds later one lone figure returned, standing dead center under a spotlight. Soft music began to play and everyone was silent once more as the pale, handsome boy from earlier began to sing 'I Have Nothing'. The only noise to be heard was sniffles from the audience as the women cried. To sing a song of this magnitude, with such a beautiful meaning, and to make it both his own and also utterly fantastic was an outstanding accomplishment. His range was other-worldly. When he hit countertenor notes with ease, everyones' breaths caught in their throats. He was _wonderful._ His performance alone pretty much guaranteed the New Directions their next trip to Nationals.

When he finished singing, the theatre shook with the loudest screams yet.

* * *

From backstage, Blaine was half-listening, half-watching the New Directions perform. They were good, up to par as usual, but when Kurt came out and sang 'I Have Nothing', Blaine was sure they were done for. Sure, Kurt was his boyfriend and he was slightly biassed, but anyone with proper hearing could know that no matter what The Warblers whipped out, nothing would come relatively _close _to what he just heard and watched. He felt chills run up and down his spine, his entire body covered in goosebumps, as he realized that Kurt was not only singing it so absurdly and offensively well, he was also pouring his heart and soul into it. Blaine was sure this was because he wanted so badly to win this and move on to Nationals once more, but a part of him also understood why Kurt was so easily relaying every single bit of his emotions.

As he listened intently to the lyrics he could only think of how he felt about Kurt. _I have nothing, nothing, nothing, if I don't have you. _The entire song was like an open love letter from Kurt to him. His heart was swelled to three times its size in his chest as he realized how special this moment was. Sure, no one in the audience, none of his friends, none of Kurt's friends, not even their families, would know Kurt was singing to anyone in particular, but Blaine knew. Kurt hadn't said anything to Blaine about singing this song or about it being a dedication to their relationship, but Blaine just _knew. _ He knew that Kurt was so overtly emotional because he wanted Blaine to catch on and to understand that everything he was saying was for him. A lump rose in his throat and he hastily wiped away the tears that he knew were close to spilling past his eyelids.

As the audience pretty much lost their minds, Blaine had to remind himself that he could not cheer or clap or anything of the sort. He'd let Kurt know how proud of him he was and how much he loved him later on, when no one was watching and they weren't in danger of being found out. Finally, the lights went down and the digital clock on the wall in front of him stopped, started blinking, and restarted, counting down from five minutes. This was it, five more minutes and they'd have to give the performance of their lives to win that trophy back. He really hoped the rest of the guys were on point tonight because if they weren't, they didn't have a chance.

After a pre-performance pep talk, and as the clock behind them ticked down from 45, 44, 43… they all got into places and were ready to go. The house lights went down once more and as the lights on the stage went up, the audience screamed just as loudly as they had for the New Directions.

_Okay, here we go. Let's do this boys. _Blaine thought, and tried to telepathically communicate to each of the guys as he looked around at them before they started performing. They had chosen to pay tribute to Michael Jackson, the King of Pop, in hopes that it would make them the Kings of Regionals. (They really were a corny bunch of dudes, as Puck had no hesitancy in pointing out when they had decided on this.) Their opening song was 'Bad'. The arrangement was tailor-made to the original arrangement and Blaine was more than satisfied with the final product. With that, him singing lead vocals, and the amazing harmonies they had added in, not to mention the dramatic fight-scene, bad-boy type choreography, Blaine felt ecstatic by the time they had finished. They were definitely on point tonight. _Thank god. _The audience was so loud that he only hoped the pitch-master (Wes) would wait for them to settle down before cuing him in for the next number or he may miss it.

The next song they did was 'Wanna Be Starting Something', in which Blaine also sang lead vocals. The arrangement consisted of crazy amp-sounds and beat-boxing that, again, were mostly true to the original arrangement but also made it stand out so that they were unique. Just like 'Bad' they had insisted on rigorous choreography. They knew they'd need something to set them apart from the New Directions (who were notoriously weak dancers) and thought that if they could sing _and _dance fantastically at once they'd have a serious edge up. Everyone was so wonderfully on point with everything that Blaine had to refrain from screaming how amazing they were doing between numbers.

As they rearranged positions for their final song, 'I Want You Back', Sebastian taking lead on this one as it was his suggestion to do the number, Blaine felt suddenly uneasy. Sebastian shot him a look that wasn't excited or anxious, not even frightened, he looked… weird. Shaking it off and chalking it up to the fact that it was Sebastian's first solo and he was probably experiencing a trillion things at once to make him seem weird, Blaine settled into position and waited as the amp-sounds began once more and it was his cue to begin his part. He would be singing neither the amp nor the bass sounds, but the light guitar sound above it before Sebastian started singing, and then behind him once he began singing. Sebastian was positively _explosive. _Blaine had never seen him so _good. _Any worries that he might have had about Sebastian floundering under the pressure of his first solo were long gone. By the end, the cheers were so loud that Blaine could feel the stage beneath him shaking from the sheer volume of it all. The lights went black once more and all of the boys met each other mid stage to celebrate.

* * *

Three quarters of an hour later, Blaine, the Warblers, Kurt, the New Directions, and Oral Intensity stood on stage awaiting their fate. It seemed as though no one was breathing. The tension around them was so thick it was almost visible. This was the moment. This was everything that their rivalry was about. This was what they worked toward year after year. Winning Nationals after this was merely the cherry on top. This victory, this moment, this trophy, whoever came out on top, _this _was all that mattered to the two groups. Every few seconds members from the opposing groups would shoot glares in the others' directions; they were warnings, and they were full of hatred and fury. In the midst of all of this, Blaine's eyes searched out Kurt's. He just wanted to see them, to look into them, to know that despite all of this madness and the insanity that was about to break out, they were okay. When it finally happened, they only dared linger for a split second, twitching their lips upward in a semblance of a smile that no one but each other would recognize. Blaine blinked pointedly at him, hoping he understood. Kurt did the same and Blaine turned away, heart pounding as the judge began to speak.

"This was _some night_, folks! Some night! But alas, we have reached our decision! So let's get right down to it then, shall we? In third place… Oral Intensity!" As the group claimed their small trophy, the other judge spoke to the audience.

"And there's really no surprise there, as these two groups are always the ones left standing. A true-blue rivalry, this is. A tale of the fiercest competition anyone has ever seen in show choir history! And I have that on good authority because I've been around for most of it!" He was old and adorable, and if Blaine didn't feel like projectile vomiting he might have chuckled at the cute, frail old man.

"And the runner up…"

There was an impregnated pause that stretched on for decades.

"From Lima, Ohio The New Directions!"

"Which means our first place winners and the group going on to Nationals is The Dalton Academy Warblers! Taking back their trophy once more!" The old man was screaming hurriedly into the microphone over the deafening noise coming from both The Warblers and the audience. Even before he had said it they had known. Once he had said that the runners-up were the New Directions, they knew they had done it and the screaming and celebration had begun.

They had finally taken back their trophy. The Warblers were moving on to Nationals.


End file.
